Deep Sea Divers
by sincerelymendacious
Summary: Archie's first real job as a professional diver was pretty clear-cut -keep the wild Pokémon away from Silph Co's construciton site and train the new hires well enough so that they don't drown. But Archie's never been good at keeping things simple, and quickly finds himself involved with the most complicated scientist in the whole company. Hardenshipping, pre ORAS.
1. Prologue Part 1

I own nothing

Trigger Warning: Drug abuse, child neglect

"It's very safe, it's durable, and it's light weight…"

"Oh, you're scaring me!"

Matsubusa stared up at the television screen, watching the salesman climb up the rickety ladder, the metal bars shaking as he moved. The ladder was set up in a way that made it look like a make-shift catwalk held in place by two step ladders on either end, and it most certainly did not appear to be safe or durable. The salesman attempted to crawl across it when the center suddenly bent downward, pitching him forward. "Now it's locked in place," he insisted as his co-host fretted in the background. The ladder collapsed not a second later, taking the unfortunate salesman down with it. "Actually, I didn't have it locked," he said, sounding surprisingly positive for a man who had likely just broken his nose. The screen quickly cut away to the next item for sale, an ugly Ludicolo figurine that danced when you pressed down on its hat.

Matsubusa laughed to himself as he looked back down at the book in his lap. The Slateport Import Value Network was usually pretty boring, like everything else that aired around noon on a weekday, but the occasional blooper made it worth sitting through the monotonous sales pitches. There was little chance of the Ludicolo figurine causing any bodily harm, so Matsubusa turned his full attention to the worn textbook open in his lap. The _Essentials of Geology_ was one of his mother's old college textbooks that he had salvaged from the attic two years back, and it hadn't seen much use until he had gotten his hands on it. The chapter on volcanic rocks was what had caught his attention when he had initially flipped through it, as the rocks pictured were the very same ones he had found while out playing on Route 112 and the Jagged Pass. He hadn't understood all of the words-still didn't- but he'd been able to understand that the rocks had been formed by magma, which to his eight year old mind had sounded pretty awesome.

He had kept the book with him ever since, slowly deciphering the meaning behind words like "sedimentary", "basalt", and "fractional crystallization", among others. It wasn't easy-the textbook was written for university students, not ten year olds whose school attendance could be described as shoddy at best. But he had kept at it, reading the chapters over and over again, fascinated by the geological processes that had made the world what it was today.

At the moment, he was reading the section on submarine volcanoes. Magma, something typically associated with heat and fire, existing somehow in the ocean-that sounded like something he would like to see one day. Maybe. Matsubusa had never seen the ocean, and wasn't overtly fond of the hot springs within Lavaridge Town. Maybe he wouldn't want to see it in person, but perhaps one day Hoenn Geographic would do a special on it…

"Matsu."

The sleepy voice pulled Matsubusa out of his thoughts. He turned his head to find his mother standing behind his seat on the couch. They lived in a small, one story house, but he must've been too focused on his book to hear her emerge from her bedroom. Her soft gray eyes, clouded with grogginess and confusion, met his sharp black eyes obscured by bangs and glasses. Her hair, the same pale red as his own, was mussed from sleeping. She needed a haircut badly, as it now reached her mid-back. _So do I_ he thought as he blew his too-long bangs away from his eyes.

She swallowed dryly as she looked him over, her gaze sliding from his face, to the book in his lap, then back up to his face. "Matsu, honey," she said breathily, her face screwed up with uncertainty. "Shouldn't…isn't it Wednesday? You should be in school, shouldn't you? It's Wednesday, right?"

"It's four-thirty," Matsubusa replied without missing a beat. "School's out."

"Oh." His mother smiled and nodded, accepting the answer without question. "I must've slept longer than I thought." She reached out to pat him on the head, but her hand missed its target and hit his glasses, knocking them askew. He readjusted them as he watched her shuffle into the kitchen. The kitchen and living room occupied the same space, separated by a long counter that also served as the dining table. He could see her from his spot on the couch, as she opened up the cabinet above the sink. It was full of orange pill bottles, most half full. She kept her stash of tranquilizers there instead of in the bathroom medicine cabinet because-in her words- she didn't want Matsubusa getting into them. She didn't seem to realize that he was now tall enough to reach the cabinets, and that he could easily obtain the pills if he wanted to.

 _Not that I ever would,_ he thought as he watched her swallow the pills dry. _I'll never sink to that level_. His eyes followed her as she walked back to her bedroom, closing the door without even a glance back at her son.

He looked around the space that made up most of his home, at the unopened mail on the counter, the dishes piled in the sink, the fridge he knew was empty, and suddenly he couldn't take another second of sitting on the old dusty couch watching infomercials. He closed his book and grabbed his backpack from off the floor, shoving the book in the main pocket. Then he set off, not bothering to turn the television off.

* * *

He found himself at the Jagged Pass not an hour later, scouring the path's rocky face for stones to add to his collection. To the untrained eye, the dull, reddish brown granite that made up the ledges were of little interest compared to the steep dirt slopes and Pokémon that made the Pass their home. But to Matsubusa, who was becoming something of an expert (or, at the very least, knew more about Geology than anyone else he knew), the sheer variety of stones, rocks and pebbles never failed to capture his interest. He had started his rock collection not long after discovering the _Essentials of Geology_ and continued to find new additions to his collection every time he visited the place. Basalts, rhyolites, andesites, pumice, and many others covered the top of his dresser, ranging from near pink to pure obsidian black in color. All of them neatly labeled and kept in orderly rows.

The abundance of rocks was due to the Pass's close proximity to Mt. Chimney, the largest volcano in Hoenn. Gray ash constantly surrounded the mountain top, the cloud raining little specks of soot down on those below. The patches of grass that littered the mountainside were more gray than green as a result, and the air always smelled faintly of sulfur. The ashes had a tendency to accumulate on one's person, but it didn't bother Matsubusa, as his clothes were already old and threadbare. It only became an issue when it stuck to his glasses.

The fall of ash was light today, and his gaze was cast downward towards the ground, so his glasses were relatively safe from the soot. He wasn't looking for anything in particular today-some days he came to the Pass with the intention of searching for a specific specimen. Coming here today had been a spur of the moment thing, so he didn't really have any kind of goal. It was just as well. Some of his best finds had been random, such as the small chunk of fire opal he had nearly tripped over last spring. The gem, while tiny, was his current favorite, and was proudly displayed on the center of his dresser.

 _My collection is getting rather numerous,_ he thought as he walked along the ledge. _I might have to relocate some of the samples._ He saw a brown basalt and picked it up. _Or perhaps I should be more discerning in what I take with me._ He already had enough basalt, so he dropped the rock back on the ground and continued onward. He wasn't that high up on the mountain, merely on the third level of the Pass's steep path, sharing the ledge with a group of Spoinks and two Numels plodding along off to the side. There might be better rocks closer to the summit, but there was only so far that he could climb up on his own. _If I had a bike, I could ride up those slopes without any trouble._

He frowned at the thought. An Acro bike would be an invaluable asset to his research, but they were wickedly expensive. He was attempting to save up for one, of course, but progress on that front was unbearably slow. Though he was able to pocket small amounts of money when his mother sent him on errands, he was often forced to spend his meager savings on food, clothing, or some other necessity that had not been provided for him. At this point, the father he had never met showing up to his house with an Acro bike was more likely than him being able to save up for one on his own.

Rage at the unfairness of his circumstances flared up inside of him. None of his classmates had to do their own grocery shopping, or had to clean up their homes on their own when the mess became too much to bear. Sure, some of them also came from single-parent households, but their parents didn't sleep sixteen hours a day. Their parents didn't just up and leave them to go on "shopping trips" without telling them. They didn't have to worry about coming home one day to find their mother dead in her bed from an overdose. It wasn't fair. Someone as clearly brilliant as himself should never have been saddled with such a useless mother.

He glared down at his sneakers, too small for his feet and falling apart. He could see his sock peak through a hole at the toe and forced himself to look away before he began screaming. And a good thing he did -over to left, by the edge of the plateau, a dark rock the size of his fist stood out against the reddish-brown dirt.

Anger temporarily forgotten, he rushed over to the rock, kicking up dust as he ran. He picked it up and held up to his face, examining its qualities. It was a lumpy chunk of scoria, pitted and coarse to the touch. He had seen this type of rock often enough on the Pass, and even had a few samples back home. This particular scoria however, was special. Flecks of cobalt blue dotted the rock's craggy surface, indicating that it was fresh, at least by geological standards. The blue shimmered in the afternoon sunlight, and Matsubusa knew that he would be taking it home with him. _But where to put it? It's too big to fit with the other rocks on my dresser. Perhaps I can relocate the other scoria …_

A loud yelp cut through his train of thought, and he turned his head towards the source of the sound. Over in the grassy patch by the rocky face of the next ledge, the two Numels were fighting over something. The smaller of the two Pokémon was curled up in a ball, shielding something with her body, while her larger companion brayed angrily, shoving hard at her in attempt to push her over. The smaller Numel stubbornly refused to budge, despite the barrage of painful Tackles she had endured.

Something about the display, whether it was the big Numel's bullying or the small Numel's resistance, stirred an odd, previously unfelt emotion within Matsubusa. It wasn't quite anger, and it wasn't quite pity, though there were elements of both in this unknown feeling. Whatever it was, it seemed to press a switch in his brain, causing him to act automatically. He hurled his rock as hard as he could in the big Numel's direction. The rock sailed through air in an arc before coming down and hitting the attacking Numel square in the head. The yellow beast gave a pained, startled shriek before darting off on its stubby legs, barreling into the group of Spoink before disappearing into the trees off the Pass. The little Numel stared after it in confusion.

The brief satisfaction he felt at scaring the bully off quickly gave way once he realized the consequences of the impulsive action. "My scoria!" he yelled as he ran over to the grass, ignoring the Numel he had thrown the rock for. The grass was tall and unkempt, and it scratched against his skin as he hunted for the speckled blue rock. Why in Rayquaza's name had he done that? To lose such a prize specimen so soon after finding it made his anger return and he tore at the grass in desperation.

He felt nudge against his leg and he looked behind him, distracted. The Numel stared up at him, big brown eyes full of adoration. She held a pale blue rawst berry, likely the item she had been defending, in her mouth. The berry was slightly squished and had dirt clinging to it from when she had pressed it to the ground. She nudged him again, offering her most coveted possession. "I don't want that," he said dismissively. The Numel blinked slowly, head cocked to the side. She craned her long neck to push the berry against his hands. "No, I don't want it," he repeated. "It's covered in slobber and dirt. Go eat it over there." He waved the Numel away and went back to his search. The Numel hadn't budged, and he could still feel its vapid gaze on his back. She was a weird little thing, but she wasn't doing any harm, so Matsubusa ignored the Numel's presence and focused on finding his scoria.

He found it after what seemed like hours of searching (but was probably only five minutes). "There you are!" He lifted the rock in triumph. The Numel, who had been watching him the entire time, squealed happily as she jumped up on her hind legs, dropping her berry. She trotted over to him, looking at the stone with interest. Puzzled by the Numel's behavior, he held the stone out, curious to see what her reaction would be.

She sniffed the rock for a few seconds, than licked its surface, getting saliva on both the rock and his hand. "Ugh!" He pulled away in disgust. "It's not food," he explained as he wiped the stone dry with the hem of his shirt. "It's scoria. It's a type of igneous rock found on most volcanoes." He looked down his nose at the ignorant creature, wondering why he was bothering. Numels weren't known for their smarts, if anything, they were world renowned dullards. This one seemed especially dim-witted, though that may have been due in part to the overly large hump on her back that made her head appear smaller in proportion.

Still, lack-wit or not, her ears were pricked and her eyes were focused on his face. Matsubusa had her full attention and she seemed to enjoy hearing him talk. That or she was hoping to have another go at licking the rock. Either way, when was the last time anybody had wanted to listen to what he had to say? It would be nice to have someone who could appreciate his genius, even if that someone was an awkward looking Numel who couldn't comprehend most of what he was saying.

He sat down to get on the Numel's level and continued from where he left off. "Igneous rocks are formed when magma cools and hardens. Scoria is created by magma after a volcanic eruption." He considered the hump on the Numel's back. "You're like a living volcano. Sort of," he said, reaching out to touch her hump. The Numel didn't stop him as he put his hand over the hollow in her back. Despite her obvious youth, he could still feel the heat emitted by the magma within her body. "Can you shoot lava out of there?" he asked, than immediately followed that up with "don't do it yet!" He scrambled back a bit in case she decided to demonstrate her Lava Plume or Flame Burst attacks. But she just stood there, looking at Matsubusa vacantly.

Matsubusa couldn't help but be a little disappointed, though he was certainly glad that the Numel hadn't spouted a ton of lava at his face. _Maybe she doesn't know how it's supposed to work._ Perhaps she needed someone to explain the volcanic process to her. And who better for the task than himself? "Alright," he said, scooting back over to her. "Let me tell you how volcanoes erupt…"

* * *

Matsubusa walked through Lavaridge Town, his feet following the familiar route to Yamaouchi's Apothecary without any mental input from his brain. The new Blazikicks he was sporting made the walk across town a lot more comfortable than it had been in the previous weeks. The sneakers were a bright orange, and though they clashed horribly with the rest of his outfit, he was too relieved to have shoes that fit to really care. The best part about them, however, had been the price-free. Well, free for him, anyway. The classmate he had stolen the sneakers from last Monday likely paid a good fifteen-thousand yen for them. Or at least his parents had. But Matsubusa reasoned that if the boy's parents could afford to waste money on extravagant sneakers once, they could likely afford to do so again.

Maybe it had been cruel to steal this boy's sneakers while he and his pals were in the hot springs. But the world had never seen fit to treat Matsubusa fairly, so why bother being fair towards the rest of the world?

Matsubusa passed through the town unnoticed by the other pedestrians in spite of the bright color of his sneakers. His ability to blend into the crowed vexed him almost as much as it benefited him. Sure, it had been useful at the hot springs- the employees had assumed he was with the group of boys from his class, and the boys hadn't even been aware that he was following them. But there were times when he wanted everyone to recognize his greatness, to see how intelligent he really was. Hell, he'd settle for mere acknowledgement that he existed.

 _It doesn't matter,_ he thought as he stomped through the streets, hands in his jacket. _They're all beneath me. I won't miss any of these people when I finally leave this stupid town._

He had just now arrived at the stupidest place in this stupid town. He pushed open the door to the apothecary and headed straight for the counter. There was another person already there, so Matsubusa had the added pleasure of waiting an additional ten minutes while the customer was taken care of. By the time it was his turn, he was already thoroughly annoyed.

It was about to get much worse. "Hey, Matsu!" Mr. Yamauchi smiled upon seeing him. He was a bespectacled, balding, middle aged man who always sounded suspiciously cheerful. His scalp, devoid of hair at the top, was always so shiny, like he polished it every morning before opening the store. "Back already? Feels like I've just seen you." Matsubusa pulled a crumpled slip of paper out of his pocket and slid the paper across the counter. Mr. Yamauchi accepted the prescription and unfolded it, his bushy eyebrows rising as he read it. "Dr. Fawzi? All the way in Rustboro City? Manami must be getting desperate," he chuckled as he brought up her information on his old computer. Matsubusa looked away, trembling with anger. Mr. Yamauchi always spoke so familiarly of his mother, like they were close friends, which they most definitely were not. It was disrespectful, in his eyes. "Alright, Matsu, I'm going to go fill this. I'll call you when it's ready." Matsubusa nodded, and began to walk down the aisles, for lack of anything better to do while he waited.

The shelves were stocked with the same over-the-counter medications that had been there the last time he had completed this tiresome errand. He turned his head toward the exit and considered simply leaving without the pills. The idea was rejected almost the same instant it had entered his mind. If he came home with just the money and a made up excuse about why he didn't have her pills, she would probably have a panic attack. Then she would proceed to use the pills she had been hoarding over the years. She never threw them away, and was constantly refilling her prescriptions, fearing that if she didn't she would run out. As a result, many of them were expired, and Matsubusa knew that they lost potency after a certain amount of time. If his mother didn't get the high she wanted, she'd just take more and more until she overdosed. The thoughts made his stomach clench uncomfortably.

He wandered around for a few more minutes, seeing nothing of interest until he reached the Pokémon section. Yamauchi didn't have that much available for Pokémon, just some generic potions, antidotes, paralyze heals, and Pokéballs. He paused at the Pokéball display, than took a quick glance around the store. Mr. Yamauchi was still behind the counter, looking the other way, and other customers were too caught up in their own business to pay attention to him. He reached out, snatched a ball, and stuck it in his pocket in one fluid motion.

"Matsu!"

He jumped, startled. Had he been caught? _First time for everything, I suppose._ But when he turned to face Mr. Yamauchi, he saw only the man's usual sleazy smile. "Prescription's ready," he said, holding up the white paper baggie. "Time to pay up." Matsubusa breathed a small sigh of relief as he walked over; acting as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

Of course, the whole transaction was completely out of the ordinary, even without his shoplifting. There was no way that it was legal for a ten year old to pick up prescription medication, not for his mother or anyone else. And he suspected that the prescriptions themselves weren't exactly on the level. His mother would have a new one from a different doctor every time she came back from a "shopping trip," and Mr. Yamauchi would always accept them, though not without making some snide comment. Matsubusa handed him the money and took the baggie, watching as the man carefully counted the bills. "Here's your change, son," he said, handing him the extra five-thousand dollar note that Matsubusa always put in his own savings. He took the money and headed for the exit. "I'll see you soon, Matsu. Tell Manami I said hello," Mr. Yamauchi called as he departed. Matsubusa did not dignify that with a response.

* * *

He was supposed to go home immediately after receiving his mother's prescription. But today, he decided that he would visit the Jagged Pass and see Scoria first. Yamaouchi's Apothecary was only a twenty minute walk away from the town limits and the Jagged Pass wasn't far from there. If he returned home to drop the pills off and went back out again, he would have an extra half-hour to hour of walking, so it was just easier to go to the Pass first. _Mother is probably sleeping, anyway._

Besides, the stolen Pokéball was practically burning a hole in his pocket, and he was eager to see Scoria today. For the past three weeks, she had been a constant presence at his side, keeping him company as they explored the Pass, looking for more specimens. Occasionally, Scoria would try to help out, bringing him rocks in her mouth like a Growlithe playing fetch. The stones she brought were usually ones Matsubusa already had back home, as she didn't really understand what he was doing- Scoria only knew that he liked rocks, so rocks she would bring him. And Matsubusa would always accept them, for when was the last time anyone had given him a present?

Sometimes they would sit together, Matsubusa's feet dangling off the side of the ledge; Scoria's tucked under her body, making her look like a little Numel-loaf. He would just talk, mostly about geology, either about some new breakthrough he had made in deciphering the _Essentials of Geography_ or something he had seen on the mountain itself. He also found himself venting his frustrations without really thinking about it. The subject of the venting was usually his mother, about how useless she was, how much her addiction disturbed him, and how little she seemed to care if he lived or died and how much he wished he felt the same about her. Scoria was a good listener- though she couldn't respond verbally, she seemed to pick up on Matsubusa's emotions, and would always try to make him feel better, usually by trying to nuzzle him affectionately. These attempts would normally knock him over, but he appreciated the gesture nonetheless.

When they weren't looking for rocks or just hanging out together, they would train by fighting the wild Spoinks that bounced around the area. The first time had been a disaster. Scoria had attempted to Tackle them into submission, but the Spoinks had bounced away from her too fast for her to catch them. A Psybeam had nearly taken her out. The next time, Matsubusa had her use Magnitude on the area, and that had done the trick, as the Spoinks couldn't navigate the shaking ground on their springs.

They had been working on her Flame Burst for the last couple days. Matsubusa found out that Scoria could, in fact, shoot magma out of her hump. But she couldn't really control where it went. There had been a few close calls when the magma had nearly gotten on Mastubusa, but it didn't deter them one bit. She had gotten better at it as they practiced, though she still wasn't great at aiming at the fast moving Spoink.

He made his way up the Pass's steep ledges, eager to show her the Pokéball he had obtained. He had no doubt that she would get in it willingly. Though there were other Numel living in the area, he had never seen her with any of them after that fight on the first day they had met. Perhaps she was an outcast? Were Numels smart enough to ostracize other Numels? Regardless, he figured it was probably lonely living on the Jagged Pass, only having him for company when he could get away from home.

He wondered if his mother would mind if he brought Scoria home, then discarded the thought. She likely wouldn't even notice. And if she did come out of her haze long enough to have a problem? _Then we'll just leave. I'm ten years old. I can leave if I want to._ Yet, why hadn't he? It's what he really should do- just catch Scoria and leave, maybe for the school in Rustboro City. There was nothing for him in Lavaridge Town. _Because she'll die without you and you know it._ Matsubusa gritted his teeth as he climbed to their usual meeting. So what if she died? What good had she ever done for him?

"Use Needle Arm!"

The command was followed by hard smack, then a cry that made Matsubusa's heart jump to his throat. He climbed faster, not even feeling the rocks scraping against his palms. He pulled himself onto the plateau and took in the site before him. Scoria was pulling herself to her feet, green thorns sticking out of her side. Matsubusa could see blood trickling down from where the thorns had punctured her body. Still, she was standing on her own, and though it hurt, she wasn't incapacitated.

She was facing off against a squat little Cacnea; it's green, thorny arms swinging threateningly in front of it. Its trainer, a scrawny boy not much older than Mastubusa, stood behind it, mouth hanging open in shock. "What?" the boy said, disbelief in his tone. "Isn't that a ground type? Why is it still standing?" He ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Whatever, just do it again, Spikes!" The Cacnea gave a loud shriek as the thorns in its arms shot out, and it rushed over to give Scoria another smack when she opened her mouth and spat out a ball of fire. The fireball hit the Cacnea in its face, and it screamed, attempting to put out the flames with its prickly arms and injuring itself further. The fire attack had left a nasty looking burn on the Cacnea's flesh.

"What? It's a fire type too? No, Spikes!" The boy quickly returned the Cacnea to its Pokéball, dismay on his face. "Well, you're hurt too, so I'll catch you!" He pulled out another Pokéball, this one empty. Before he could even move his arm back to throw, Matsubusa flung his own Pokéball at Scoria, and she vanished into the ball in a cloud of red light. The ball twitched once, twice, than clicked and stopped moving.

The boy looked at the Pokéball in his hand, than at the one on the ground, brows furrowed in confusion. "Hey…what…who took my Pokémon?" His confusion turned to anger, his face becoming redder than Matsubusa's hair. Matsubusa ignored him and walked over to his Pokéball, his heart still beating fast. If he had arrived a few minutes later, Scoria would've been forced to become this idiot's Pokémon and he wouldn't have even known what had happened to her. He picked up the ball, doing his best to keep the rage swelling within him at bay. Scoria was safe now, so there was no point in getting mad over something that hadn't happened.

The other trainer did not bother to hide his admittedly justified anger. "You stole my Pokémon," he shouted, pointing a finger at Matsubusa accusingly. "What the heck! I was going to catch that!" He stomped over, eyes full of fury.

Matsubusa gave the boy his most condescending look and said "I didn't steal her from you. If she was yours, my Pokéball wouldn't have opened, and I wouldn't have been able to catch her." He spoke slowly, as though he thought the boy was too stupid to comprehend his words.

"I'm the one who weakened it! It nearly set my Cacnea on fire, so it's mine by right!" He attempted to snatch the ball from Matsubusa's hands, but Matsubusa sidestepped him quickly. "Give it to me!"

"You didn't even know she was a fire type," Matsubusa said, backing away from the trainer's grasping hands. "Do you even know what she is?"

"It's mine, that's what it is! Give it back, you thief!"

"No!" Matsubusa shoved the trainer hard toward the edge of the ledge. "No! You don't know anything about her! She would've hated you!"

The boy shoved him back. "You're a thief," he spat, taking in Matsubusa's worn clothing and new sneakers. "I bet you stole those sneakers too! You're too lazy to do things the right way, so you just take from others!"

Matsubusa inhaled sharply at the boy's words. How dare this imbecile make assumptions about him? He had no idea what he had been through. "You don't know anything," he repeated through gritted teeth. You don't anything about anything, and you're going to get your Cacnea killed because you're too stupid to recognize a fire Pokémon when you see it!"

A fist slammed into Matsubusa's face, and he fell to the ground, nose bleeding, and glasses knocked clean off his face. Scoria's Pokéball opened, and she materialized in a flash of red light, braying loudly at the boy. Hot magma burst out of her hump, shooting towards the boy. The magma missed, but it frightened the boy enough to make him stumble off the ledge, his body hitting the rocky floor with a sickening crack.

Matsubusa couldn't move, shock paralyzing his limbs. Scoria trotted over to him, a low whine coming from her throat. She moved to nuzzle him, the touch of her fuzzy nose against his throbbing face bringing him out of his paralysis. He scrambled to find his glasses, put them on (thank Arceus they weren't broken), and rushed to peer over the edge, afraid of what he might see.

The boy was lying on his stomach, one arm tucked under his body, his face turned toward the side. He looked like he was still breathing, but Matsubusa couldn't tell for sure from this distance. The magma Scoria had shot out smoldered nearby, cooling on the hard granite. Matsubusa stood up and climbed down to the ledge, Scoria following behind him with her Pokéball in her mouth. He examined the boy's body and was relieved to find that yes, the boy was still breathing. _He's unconscious, not dead._ He let out a breath that he hadn't even realized he was holding, and then turned back to his newly caught Pokémon. She looked up at him with the same dull sweetness in her eyes that she always had. She came closer and put the Pokéball in his hand.

 _We need to go_ , Matsubusa thought as he looked at her. _We need to go before this kid gets found. If he tells the police that Scoria attacked him, they'll take her away and…_ It was one thing for a Pokémon to grievously injure another Pokémon in a battle. It was quite another to injure a human being. Pokémon that attacked other humans were considered to too dangerous to be kept, and were often put down if they were caught by the League Police.

Matsubusa's stomach clenched. _That's not going to happen. Not to her, not to us._ He returned Scoria to her Pokéball and ran down the steep path of the Jagged Pass, planning their escape as he went.

* * *

Despite the direness of their situation, Matsubusa found that he didn't have it in him to just leave the boy at the Pass, unconscious and exposed to the elements. He called emergency services on the first pay phone that he saw when he returned to town, merely reporting the boy's location before hanging up abruptly. Guilt somewhat assuaged, he made his way home as stealthily as he could. He figured that he had some time before the boy was in any condition to talk to the police. And even then, he technically wasn't a registered trainer, so the police would still have some searching to do. _But they'll put the pieces together, eventually._ Especially if the boy was able to describe Matsubusa's appearance to them. There weren't that many boys with red hair living in Lavaridge, and even fewer walking around with a broken nose. The chances of him continuing to go unnoticed by the police were slim.

 _We need to leave as soon as possible,_ he thought as he opened the door to his house. _I just need to grab my savings and pack a few things and we'll be on our way._ But he paused upon entering the house. His mother was sitting on the couch, staring worriedly into space. Surprised at seeing her awake, he stepped into the living room cautiously. Her head snapped up at his approach, and she darted off the couch upon seeing him, moving faster than she had in years.

"Matsu, honey," she said as she came toward him, her usual sleepy tone absent. She pulled him into a tight embrace, hand smoothing down his hair. "Where have you been? I was so worried." Her concern, and the hug, caught him off guard. His mother, while she never hurt him physically, wasn't really prone to physical displays of affection. He leaned into the embrace without thinking as she stroked his hair. "You were gone for so long," she muttered.

They stood like that for a minute before she gently pushed him away, her hands on his shoulders. She examined his face, and lightly touched his bruised nose, the touch stinging slightly despite her gentleness. "Matsu, honey," she said, tone worried as she caressed his face. The touch was soothing, and Matsubusa relaxed, temporarily forgetting the events of past hour. "Did you get mommy's medicine?"

The words shattered the moment like glass. Matsubusa stiffened, then reached into his pocket and angrily thrust the white paper bag at her. He could hear her tearing into the bag as he stalked off to his room. Tears pricked at his eyes, and he blinked them back before they could fall. _I won't miss you. Not one bit._ He grabbed his backpack, and turned it upside down, spilling his school books out on the floor. Then he stuffed it with his sleeping bag and a few other necessities until it was full to burst. He looked at the rocks sitting on his dresser drawer, and felt a deep sadness. There was no way he could take them with him. They would just be extra, useless baggage. _Same with the_ _Essentials of Geology_.

He cast one last, sorrowful look at the rocks before heading towards his bed. He lifted the mattress and pulled out the money he had managed to save up over the last few months. The six bills, worth five-thousand yen each, only added up to thirty-thousand yen. He frowned, considering the small amount of money. _How far can we go on this?_ He thought for a moment as he unzipped the backpack's front pocket and put the money in it. _Perhaps mother has some money set aside? She must have some way of affording all those pills._

He glanced out at the living room from his door. His mother was already passed out asleep on the couch, so he quietly made his way to her bedroom, opening the door slowly. The sheets on her bed were rumpled, and there were more pill bottles on the vanity, the orange containers placed in a manner eerily similar to his rock collection. _I collect rocks, she collects pills. I guess the oran berry really doesn't fall far from the tree._ He began opening her dresser drawers, searching for any loose bills she may have stashed away. The dresser had nothing but clothes, so he moved on to her vanity, which was equally useless. He sighed, moving on to the nightstand.

He searched for a good ten minutes, becoming more frantic as time passed by. Then he found it, a small, gray metal box wedged between the wall and the headboard of his mother's bed. Matsubusa was relieved to discover there was no lock on the box, and opened it up, expecting to find maybe one or two ten-thousand dollar notes. But to his surprise and anger, he saw that the box was full of bills, stuffed haphazardly into to the box. _She was hoarding money all this time?_ He stared down at the bills in disbelief. Where had this money been when their fridge was empty? When his shoes had fallen apart? When the house practically froze during the winter months? He wanted to go out there, to confront her about the hoarded money, to throw the metal box in her face, to just scream and cry and ask _why couldn't you have been a normal parent?_

He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down and think logically. There was no point in talking to her now, when he and Scoria were about to leave this worthless town, perhaps even the whole country, forever. _It doesn't matter_ he thought as he crammed the money into his back pack. The money collected, he strode out of the room, past his mother on the couch, and exited the house, without looking back.

* * *

Matsubusa sat on his sleeping bag, counting his money. Scoria slept next him, snoring softly. Tiny, red pin-pricks dotted her legs from where the Cacnea's thorns had hit her, but they seemed to be healing up nicely. He had bought a few potions and some food for both himself and Scoria at the PokéMart before departing town hours before. It had been a pretty nerve-wracking experience- he had been convinced that the police were looking for him and Scoria, in order to bring them to justice for what they had done to that poor, stupid trainer. But he hadn't even so much as seen a police officer on his way out of Lavaridge, and had been able to leave unmolested.

He finished counting the money and still couldn't believe how much of it there was, even after buying the supplies. One and half million yen, all in ten-thousand dollar notes. Currency accepted anywhere from Hoenn, to Sinnoh, to far off Unova and Kalos. He and Scoria could go anywhere they wanted with this money. Matsubusa looked south, and saw the bright lights of Mauville City in the distance. He could see the outline of the massive building that contained the city from where he was camped on Route 111. It was the biggest building he had ever seen, and he couldn't help but be a bit eager to get there. Mauville City seemed as good a place to start as any, at least for the first few days.

He looked back at the money, the crumpled bills smoothed and stacked as neatly as possible in his hand. Where had it come from? His mother didn't have a job; she slept too much to hold one down. _Did my father send this?_ The only thing that Matsubusa really knew about his father for sure was that he lived in Johto, and that he had abandoned his mother before Matsubusa had been born. _Perhaps I could look for him?_ He shook his head. What would be the point of that? If his father hadn't wanted him when he was a baby, he surely wouldn't want him now that he was a thieving ten year old with no accomplishments to his name.

He slid the money back into its place in his pack and leaned back against the tree they were camped under. The events of the day had been the most stressful of his life, and he was bone-tired. He closed his eyes, thinking of nothing.

Or tried to, anyway. His mind kept drifting back to his mother, likely still passed out and unaware that he was even missing. He wondered how long it would take for her notice his absence. _Probably not until the police come looking for me, if they are in fact looking for me. Then it won't be until she needs a refill._ Would she be sad to find him missing? Genuinely sad that her only son had abandoned her? Or would she merely be upset that she didn't have anyone to run errands for her anymore?

 _She'll die without you._ The intrusive thought sent a chill down Matsubusa's spine. Would she die without him there? She was definitely in a difficult spot now that Matsubusa had stolen all of the money she had stashed away. How would she manage? Would she cut back on the pills? _Not likely. She'll take more and more until she eventually overdoses. What reason does she have to hold back without you there?_

An image of his mother cold and dead on the couch flashed through his mind. "So what?" he said, fists clenched. "So what if she dies? She's never done me any good." A tear slid down his face, than another, and this time he didn't bother wiping them away. "She was supposed to take care of me, not the other way around." His voice was choked in spite of his words, and he buried his face in his hands. "It's not my fault," he said, before completely breaking down.

Scoria, woken by his sobbing, crawled over to his shaking form and nuzzled his shoulder. He ignored her for a few minutes, caught up in his own miserable thoughts. Then she pushed her body against his, putting her stubby front legs into his lap. Matsubusa, face red, nose throbbing, hugged the Numel close and pressed his face to her yellow fur.

From this moment on, the previous 10 years of his life would mean nothing. He had 1.5 million yen in cash, his smarts, and Scoria. He needed nothing else.

Author note: The infomercial at the beginning is based on a real blooper that aired on television. I hope Harold eventually recovered from his unfortunate fall.


	2. Prologue Part 2

I own nothing

"Archie c'mon…get out of the water, man."

Archie turned his head towards the source of the whining, a chubby, dark-skinned boy cowering behind one of the many trees that ringed around the small glade. The skinny leppa berry tree Matt was hiding behind made for poor cover against his husky build, and Archie couldn't help but think that he looked pretty silly. Matt was a bit bigger than Archie, despite being two years younger, but was as easily frightened as a newborn Skitty. He also believed anything anyone told him. Granny often said that if you looked up gullible in the dictionary, you'd find a picture of Matt blubbering next to the definition.

He peered over at Archie, big watery eyes full of fear. "Archieeeee…" he whined, the pitch oddly high for a boy his size. "The monster's gonna get you."

Archie was currently sitting at the edge of the pond, bare feet dangling in the water. His sneakers were next to him, tossed carelessly aside. The pond was located in the small forest between Fortree City and Route 120. It was supposed to be a secret between him and Matt, but it seemed like Matt had blabbed about it to somebody (probably Jacques) who promptly filled his head with some nonsense about a monster skulking in the water. Complete bilge, as his Daddy would've said.

He said as much to Matt. "What are you blithering about?" he said, mimicking his father as best he could. "Ain't no monster in these tiny puddles."

"Yeah there is!" Matt had taken a step away from the tree, though his hands still clutched the bark. "Jacques said so! He saw it!"

It had been Jacques then. The older boy had a face like a Seviper and an attitude twice as nasty. He used to bully Matt constantly-teasing him, tricking him, pushing him around-until a bloodied nose courtesy of Archie's fist had put a stop to most of the harassment.

But not all of it. Jacques was evidently finding more creative ways to torment his youngest foster sibling, such as making up stories about a killer Goldeen, or whatever it was he had told Matt.

"Jacques is a big old liar, that's what he is. He didn't see jack shit." Archie glanced around the trees reflexively, on the lookout for Granny. She was back in Fortree City, too far away to have heard him swear, but there were times when he was convinced that she had a little alarm in her head that buzzed any time he did something bad, like cussing in front of the easily impressionable Matt.

Matt was too focused on his fear for Archie's well-being to have registered use of the illicit word. "He did too! He said it was a Carvanha! A big, fat, killer Carvanha with teeth bigger than my head!"

Archie rolled his eyes so hard that he thought they would fall out of their sockets. "Carvanhas don't live in ponds, dummy. They live in the river on Route 119." Archie shook his head, once again stunned by the extent of Matt's gullibility. "How'd a Carvanha get all the way out here? Did it flop across the city?"

Matt ignored Archie's perfectly sensible questions in favor of spouting more rubbish. "You remember when Ms. Tsukuda's Spinda went missing? Jacques said that it fell into the pond and got eaten by the Carvanha."

"That Spinda got hit by truck, Matt. Everyone knows that."

"There was nothing but bones left," Matt continued, undeterred by things such as logic and reality. "Bones and its head." Matt whispered this last part, eyes widened by the sheer horror of it all.

Archie looked away and laughed loudly, kicking his feet in the water. "Man I can't believe you bought all that," he snickered. Matt pouted, offended that Archie did not give the situation the gravity he felt it deserved. "Bones and a head," he whispered, mocking Matt's tone of feared awe. He turned back to Matt, expression serious, and said "Ain't no monster, no Carvanha, no nothing in this-"He cut himself off, suddenly, face twisting up in fear and confusion.

"Archie?" Matt peered at him, hands trembling as he grasped the tree bark. "What's wrong?"

"Something's got me," he said, panic in his voice. He attempted to tug his left leg out of the water. "I'm stuck, Matt. Help me!" He reached out towards Matt as he struggled, pleading.

Courage pushed Matt out from behind the tree, but fear kept him from proceeding any further. "Archie!" he shrieked, frozen in place. "What do I do?"

It's got me, Matt!" he screamed, trying and failing to push himself forward. "It's…It's...," Archie slid his foot easily out of the water, fearful expression turning into a mocking grin. "It's a whole lotta nothing!"

"That's not funny!" Matt yelled as Archie cackled, slapping his knee. Usually Archie didn't scare Matt like that, but sometimes the other boy made it just too easy. Matt's eyes filled with tears, and his lower lip quivered.

"Aww, Matt." Archie stopped laughing, feeling a little guilty about his deception. Crybaby or not, Matt had idolized him ever since he had come to live with Granny a year ago, and neither Granny nor his parents would've approved of him picking on a younger kid. "I'm sorry I scared you," he said. "But you can't be believing everything Jacques tells you. He's just trying to yank your chain." Matt nodded solemnly, looking down at his feet in shame. "Anyway, there is no Carvanha in this pond. I've been sitting here for fifteen minutes and nothing's got me."

And then something bit down on his right leg and pulled him halfway into the pond. It happened so fast that his chin smacked against the muddy edge of the bank, and he could only let out a startled yelp before he was dragged under the water completely.

Pond water invaded his mouth and nostrils before he could hold his breath. He thought he heard Matt scream as he managed to grab the edge of the bank and pull his head above water. "Matt, help-"he yelled, but the monster clamped down on his leg and pulled him back under.

The water was too murky, and his brain was too frantic for him see anything more than a vague shadow of his assailant. But it was big, bigger than the Goldeen and Magikarp that normally swam in this pond. And Goldeens definitely didn't have this kind of strength. Archie could feel the monster's teeth as it gripped his leg, trying to pull him down deeper. An image of his own body stripped of everything but bones flashed through his mind _. I'm gonna die_ , he thought, free limbs flailing in the water, unable to breathe. _I'm gonna drown like Mommy and Daddy_. Then an angry defiance arose within him, cutting through the fear. _Not going down without a fight!_

Archie mustered up the last of his rapidly diminishing strength and kicked hard with his free leg. His foot made contact with something squishy, and the monster leg go. He swam to the surface and pulled himself out of the water, knocking one of his sneakers into the pond and nearly tripping over the other as he fled without looking back.

He ran through the forest, fear and adrenaline keeping the pain in his leg at bay. He moved without thinking, desperate to put as much distance between himself and the Lurking Horror of Route 120 as he could. He kept running even after emerging from the forest and entering the city, only stopping when he collided hard with something.

That something turned out to be Shelly, his foster sibling. The collision had left them both sprawled on the ground. Her Poochyena crowded her as she lifted her upper body up, and groaned. "Watch where you're going," she muttered as her Pokémon licked her face. Then she saw it was Archie who had run into her and her blue eyes narrowed. "Archimore Roberts Jr.!" she exclaimed as she stood up, pointing a finger at him accusingly. "What do you think you're doing?"

"Whaddya think you're doing?" Archie shot back. He frowned, fear replaced by annoyance. His leg had begun throbbing painfully, and he knew there would be a bruise later.

"I'm out looking for your dumb self," Shelly said, exasperated. "Poor Matt came running into the Kennel, crying about you getting eaten by a monster. What did you did do to that boy? And why are you so wet?"

Archie pushed Shelly aside, paying her questions no mind. He was completely drained, and he limped forward slowly. Shelly was able to keep up with him easily. "You're gonna catch it, Archimore Roberts Jr," she said, matter-of-factly. Calliope barked in agreement.

"I don't need you to tell me that," Archie grumbled. Shelly had become so overbearing after Granny had given her the little Poochyena for her 10th birthday a few weeks ago. She acted like having the Pokémon made her a grown-up, and was always telling Archie what to do, even though he was only two years younger than she was. It was like she was trying to become Granny's second in command, and she had even started wearing her hair in the same braided pigtails that Granny had. Archie found the whole thing irritating, and he missed the days when she would play with him and Matt in the forest. _But now she's got too many responsibilities to waste time with the likes of us._

The three of them walked through the city, heading towards the kennel that Granny bred her Mightyenas in. Fortree City was a city in name only. The population was small compared to Lilycove and Slateport, and there was only one dirt road that vehicles could pass through. The Pokémon Center, Gym, and other commercial buildings lined the ground floor, while residential buildings were built into the enormous Rosewoods, connected by a series of rope bridges. Archie had been astonished the first time he had seen them when he had visited Granny as a toddler, and the sheer height of the trees daunted him even now. Fortree City was a nice enough place, and climbing the trees was fun, but it wasn't home to him. Home was Pacifidlog Town, and more importantly, the sea. Route 119's river and Route 120's ponds just couldn't compare to the smell of the ocean in his mind.

They arrived at the kennel to find Granny, Matt and Jacques outside. Granny was comforting a still teary-eyed Matt, while Jacques sneered at them off to the side, well out of Granny's line of sight. "I found him," Shelly declared proudly, hands on her hips.

"You did not. I was on my way back anyway," Archie said. He hoped that Granny would send her and Jacques away before she punished him. Nothing was worse than having an audience while being scolded.

Matt began sobbing again upon hearing Archie's voice. He ran over, tears and snot streaming down his face, and hugged Archie, almost knocking him over. Archie patted Matt's fuzzy head, guilt at distressing the boy returning.

"I-I thought you were dead," he sobbed, his tears staining Archie's tank top. "Thought you was j-just bones and a h-head!"

"See Matt, I told you there was a monster," Jacques sniggered. "Probably spit Archie back out because he smelled like old fish."

"You shut up!" Archie disentangled himself from Matt and started towards Jacques, fists up.

Shelly darted between them. "Boys, stop fighting!" She held her arms out, ready to push one of them back if need be.

"This ain't none of your business, Shelly," Archie said through gritted teeth. "It's all his fault! Matt's upset because of him!"

"I wasn't even there. How's this my fault?" Jacques asked, false innocence sweetening his voice.

"You know what you did, you lily-livered scumbag!" Archie tried to charge at the sneering teenager, but Shelly standing in the way. He attempted to reach past her and grab Jacques, but she kept pulling his hands away. Jacques laughed at them, standing just out of reach. "Wait till I get my hands on you!"

"Junior."

All movement ceased at the sound of Granny's voice. She was a small woman, dressed in a plain button-up blouse and khaki capris. Her iron gray hair was braided in the same manner as Shelly's and her dark brown skin was wrinkled with age. She didn't look like a woman who bred Mightyenas for a living, nor did she look like someone who could raise three foster children and her orphaned grandson all on her own. But she accomplished both tasks and made it look easy, running her business and her household with a strict, but caring hand.

Archie doubted that hand would be too kind to him in the near future. He swallowed and stepped forward, arms at his sides.

"Junior," she repeated calmly, "Please tell me why Matt is so bent out of shape."

Archie relaxed a little. Granny hadn't passed judgment on him yet. He glanced at the four people waiting to hear his side of the story. Should he tell the truth? He looked at Jacques, saw his cruel smirk and decided that there was no way that he was going to let the boy think that his mean stories had any truth to them. Even if there was technically some sort of monster living in a pond near Route 120.

He opened his mouth to lie when Matt interrupted him, blubbering. "The Carvanha dragged him down! He almost got killed!"

"It wasn't a Carvanha, man," Archie said, giving Matt a small shove. "It was just a…Goldeen."

Jacques burst out laughing. "Oh man, that Goldeen probably smelled you and thought you were her boyfriend!" He bent over, cackling madly. "Archie's got fish hickeys!"

"I do not! Shut up!" Archie didn't know what hickeys were, but they couldn't be good if Jacques thought they were funny.

"Jacques, go feed the dogs, please," said Granny. It sounded like a polite request, but they all knew that there would be hell to pay if Jacques tried to argue. He left without complaint, still chuckling to himself. Granny then turned to Shelly and Matt. "Shelly, go get Matt cleaned up." Shelly frowned, unhappy that she wouldn't get to witness Archie catching it, but she too, left without arguing. She returned Calliope to her Pokéball and guided Matt over to the ladder that led to their house. Archie watched them deftly climb up the ladder for a moment before looking at Granny, ready to face the music.

Her sharp brown eyes assessed him, taking in his soaked clothing and muddy face. He couldn't tell if she had bought his Goldeen story-Granny wouldn't let you know that she knew you were lying until you exposed yourself. Her gaze lingered on his feet, and he wondered if his bruises would give him away. But her next words sent a chill down his spine.

"Junior, where are your shoes?"

 _Oh no._ He vaguely remembered one of them falling into the pond after his escape. "Uh…I think I forgot them." He cringed, knowing he had just made a fatal mistake.

"Well, you best go fetch them, boy." Granny's Unovan accent made her words sound slower coming out of her mouth, making them all the more painful to hear. What was he going to say when he came back with only one shoe? And what about that thing in the pond? What if it tried to chase him on land? Archie shook those thoughts away. He might be incredibly stupid at times, but he was no coward. Besides, he should be safe as he stayed out of the water, right?

"I'll be right back," he said, giving Granny his most endearing grin. Granny only nodded, watching him as he rushed off.

* * *

Archie stood by the same leppa berry tree that Matt had hid behind not an hour ago, bravery suddenly gone. His sneaker- the one that hadn't fallen into the pond- was right where he had left it. At the pond's edge, within easy reach of a monster that might want to have another go at consuming his flesh.

Archie considered just leaving the sneaker where it was. It wasn't like he would have any use for just one, and he was going to be in trouble regardless. Doing that seemed cowardly however, and he wasn't going to let himself be scared away from what used to be one of his favorite spots.

Archie mustered up his courage and was about to walk toward his sneaker when he realized something. He and Matt had found the pond about 3 months ago, and both of them had swum in it on multiple occasions without being attacked by any Pokémon. They had seen a few Goldeen and one or two Magikarp, but those Pokémon had stayed away from them. The last time he had gone swimming had been two days ago, and there hadn't been any sign of a monster then.

Archie glanced down at his right leg, noting the bruises that had begun to form there. If whatever had grabbed him had been a Carvanha, wouldn't it have just torn his leg off? One of Daddy's former crew members had lost an arm to rampaging Carvanha, and he had been a good four times Archie's size. _It probably was a Goldeen,_ he thought, laughing at his own silliness. He strode over to his lone sneaker, completely unafraid. _I can't believe I let Jacques' stupid stories get to me like that._

He bent over to pick up his shoe when he heard a loud splashing sound. Droplets of water rained down on him, but he was too shocked at what was floating in the center of the pond to feel them. It was a large fish with yellow fins sharper than a needle, and huge, powerful jaws. Archie could see the sharp spines embedded in its blue scales, the red half of its body still submerged. Fangs jutted out of its mouth, not quite as big as Matt's head, but still larger than the teeth of Granny's Mightyena. They could tear through Archie's flesh without any problems.

 _A Carvanha_! Archie's eyes widened as he gawked at the fearsome predator. _But how? Why is it here? How did Jacques know?_ Archie wondered if Jacques had anything to do with the Carvanha's recent appearance. _No way. Not even he would go this far for a prank._

The boy and the Carvanha stared at each other, measuring each other up. The Carvanha's left eye was only half-way open, and Archie felt a small surge of pride at knowing his kick had done some damage. The Carvanha dived down for minute and resurfaced, holding the shredded remains of his other sneaker in its mouth. It looked at Archie, seemingly amused by his mystified expression, than gobbled the sneaker up in one bite.

"What…hey, that was my shoe!" Archie yelled, fear instantly forgotten in the face of such a strange display. The Carvanha swam around in circles, a "ke, ke, ke," sound coming from its mouth. Was it laughing at him? Archie's face felt his face turn red with fury at being made a fool of twice in one day by the same Pokémon.

"You scurvy bilge-swiller!" He picked up his remaining sneaker, anger taking control of his brain. "Granny's gonna be mad at me because of you!" He launched the shoe as hard as he could at the laughing Carvanha. "Here!" Have the other one!"

The Carvanha smacked the sneaker with its caudal fin, sending it right back at him. The sneaker flew through the air and hit Archie right in the head.

"Oww," Archie groaned, rubbing the spot where the sneaker had made contact with his forehead. "Argh, now I'm really pissed!" He threw the sneaker again, and this time the Carvanha caught it in its mouth. It promptly tore the sneaker apart, pieces of the shoe floating in the water around it.

"Well, congrats to you! Now you got foot-breath!" The Carvanha was not bothered in the least by the concept, and it began laughing its weird, clicky laugh again. "I'm gonna tell Granny what you did, and then you're gonna catch it! Just you wait, you…you…scamp!" He turned and darted out of the glade, the Carvanha's "ke, ke, ke"s ringing in his ears.

* * *

In the end, Archie kept silent about his encounter with the Carvanha.

Unfortunately, this meant that he had no excuse for returning to Granny empty-handed. He told her that he thought the Goldeen that attacked him had eaten his shoes, unable to think of a better lie on the spot. Granny gazed at him stoically, and he knew she was considering whether or not she should call him out on his rather poor attempt at lying. Finally she sighed and gave him a ten minute lecture on "responsibility", and "taking care of his possessions", and how "shoes don't grow on these here trees, boy".

"Honestly Junior, how am I supposed to trust you with a Pokémon when you can't even keep track of your own shoes? You're eight years old; you need to start acting right."

Archie looked down at his shoeless feet, ashamed. While the loss of his sneakers had mostly been the Carvanha's fault, he knew that he wasn't entirely blameless. "I'm sorry Granny. It won't happen again. I promise."

"I know, Junior." Granny lifted his chin, tilting his face upwards. "You may make mistakes, but you never make the same one twice. Just like your Daddy." Her voice had that sad, wistful tone that she got whenever she spoke of her late son. It usually made Archie sad to hear it, but this time he smiled.

"Did Daddy ever lose his shoes?"

"Your Daddy once traded his sneakers to some random trainer for an Apricorn. A fake Apricorn. I was so mad when I found out that I made him trim the branches around the house for a month." She chuckled at the memory, and then, as an afterthought, said "You'll be helping me clean the kennels for the next week as punishment, and you'll be wearing your flip-flops until I can get you some new sneakers."

Archie repressed a groan and nodded. He had been expecting this particular punishment, but having to wear his old flip-flops would be a pain. They were made of a flimsy foam material and they weren't suited for activity more strenuous than walking on the beach. He'd need to be careful going up and down the ladders in them if he wanted to them to stay in one piece.

"Alright Junior, go get cleaned up. Dinner's in thirty minutes." Dismissed, Archie walked off to the bathroom. The punishments, while annoying, weren't that bad, nothing he couldn't handle. He didn't regret not telling Granny about the Carvanha-if he had, she would've gone to the pond herself with Pooch, her old Mightyena, and taken the fish Pokémon out before it could potentially hurt some other child. Though Archie was still mad at the Carvahna for destroying his sneakers and getting him in trouble, he didn't think that the Carvanha had done any of it out of maliciousness. Its jaws were strong enough to have bitten his leg clean off, yet the only injury he had sustained was a ring of bruises around his calf. There was also that weird little laugh to take into account. Something about the fish's behavior made him believe that Carvanha was bored and wanted someone to play with.

 _I'd be bored too if all I had to do all day was swim around in circles._ He wasn't one-hundred percent sure of it though. The only way to be sure was to go back to the pond tomorrow and seek the Pokémon out.

* * *

Over the next two days, Archie was able to confirm his suspicions regarding the Carvanha's true nature. He had gone to the pond after school and stayed there until it was time for him to go home and help Granny with the kennels. During that time, the Carvanha had not made any serious attempts at doing him bodily harm. If anything, the Carvanha always seemed happy to see him. It would surface immediately anytime he stepped into the glade and swim over to the pond's edge, laughing. It never tried to get on land-Archie figured that was because fish Pokémon had limited mobility outside of the water. Archie, for his part, never got in the water with it. The Carvanha was friendly enough, but it didn't seem to know its own strength, and Archie doubted that Granny would miss any injuries that suddenly appeared on his body as a result of playing with the Carvanha.

Instead, Archie would throw berries at the Carvanha. The leppa berry trees native to the forest were easy enough to climb and the worst a berry could do was splatter on his clothes. The Carvanha would do one of two things: it would catch the berries in its mouth and eat them, or it would smack it back to Archie with its caudal fin. Most of the time the berry was too squished by the impact to throw again, but sometimes it stayed together long enough for them to have a short game of catch.

It was during that time that Archie decided that the Carvanha would be his. Granny's Poochyena's were nice enough, and he liked them a lot, but having a Carvanha would mean so much more to him. Both of his parents had loved water Pokémon. Mommy had a fat little Seel named Siyo, and Daddy had Kamo, a massive Sharpedo. Kamo had been Daddy's partner since the beginning, long before Archie's birth. The Sharpedo could cut through the waves faster than any boat Archie had seen, often with Daddy on its back. He had always wanted to ride it himself, but Mommy had never let him, fearing for his safety. Daddy had promised to start teaching him on his seventh birthday, but the typhoon had hit Pacifidlog town while he was at sea, and neither of his parents had survived.

Archie had been visiting Granny the day that the storm suddenly hit. When she had told him about the storm, they hadn't been sure about his parent's fate, as nobody had been able to contact them and their bodies hadn't been found. The days immediately following had left Archie sicker than he had ever been in his life, weakness and debilitating headaches keeping him bed ridden. The discovery of his mother's and Siyo's bodies had almost been a relief- the headaches had gone away, only to be replaced by grief and guilt. The washed up remains of Daddy's diving boat had been found shortly after on a deserted island between Pacifidlog and Route 131, though neither his father nor Kamo had been found among the wreckage.

He had tried to comfort himself by hoping that there was still a chance his father might show up alive and well somewhere. But the false hope only caused him more pain as the days passed without any word of his father, and he quickly resigned himself to the reality of being an orphan.

The past year had been rough. Archie wound up losing quite a bit of weight from lack of appetite, and was irritable and angry around the other children. Granny had done her best to keep him healthy, and she never let her own grief get in the way of taking care of him. Matt and Shelly were also a source of comfort in their own way. Shelly, an orphan herself, understood what Archie was going through. Matt had never known his parents, and was generally kind of a clingy kid, but somehow that neediness made Archie feel better, like he wasn't just some kid to be pitied.

Granny had once told him that the dead had ways of making their presence known to their loved ones, even in the afterlife. "You'll feel them, Junior," she had said as he buried his face in her shoulder during a particularly bad night. "As much love as they had for you, you'll feel when their watching."

Archie felt them now, whenever he played with that Carvanha. He knew that on some level, his father's spirit had somehow manipulated fate into bringing this Carvanha to this pond for him to discover and capture.

On the third day after the initial attack, Archie stopped at the Fortree Pokémart after school and bought a single Pokéball. He kept it hidden in his backpack-he wasn't likely to run into Granny, but Jacques might see it and tattle on him just for the hell of it. He rushed over to the glade where the Carvanha (who he had already dubbed Kamo Jr.) was waiting expectantly. "Hey buddy," he greeted, digging through his backpack and pulling the Pokéball out. "Got a surprise for you!" He held the Pokéball out, waiting for Kamo Jr.'s reaction. The fish nodded excitedly, opening its mouth in anticipation.

"Err-you don't eat it," Archie said, a bit taken aback. "But you'll get lots of berries once you're my Pokémon!" He tossed the ball into the pond, and Kamo Jr. disappeared into it instantly.

And popped right back out, the halves of the broken ball floating uselessly in the water. Kamo Jr. splashed merrily, giggling at the dumbfounded boy who had just tried and failed to capture him. Archie walked over the edge and sank down onto his knees. "Why?" he said, hurt by the rejection. "Aren't you sick of this pond? I know I can't take you home, but I could at least take you to the river…" Kamo Jr. swam over and looked up at Archie, closer to him then had been since the day it first grabbed his leg.

Archie reached out tentatively to touch the space between the Pokémon's eyes. The Carvanha's spines stung a little, but it wasn't too bad, and Kamo Jr. seemed to enjoy it, so he began rubbing it harder. Petting the Carvanha like this reminded Archie of when his father used to let him pet Kamo. "These guys look big n' tough, but they become soft as Skittys if you rub their snouts," he had said, guiding Archie's hand along the Sharpedo's face. Kamo Jr. appeared to be enjoying it as much as his namesake had. He rolled over onto his back, exposing his red belly, and Archie began petting his stomach, noting that the scales there felt smoother.

A thought came to Archie during the impromptu petting session. Obviously the Carvanha liked him enough to expose his vulnerable underbelly. Then why hadn't it wanted to be captured by him? Had it been abandoned here by a previous trainer? _That'd explain how it got here. Maybe it needs me to prove myself to him?_

"I'm not giving up," Archie said out loud as Kamo Jr. flipped himself over. "I'll catch you. I'm not like the yellow-belly that abandoned you." Archie grinned at the Carvanha, determined. "You'll see!"

Kamo Jr. responded to this declaration by spitting pond water at his face.

* * *

"I don't think I need to tell you that everything I'm 'bout to say is top secret," Archie said four days later in a hushed tone. He, Shelly, and Calliope were behind the Fortree General Food Market on a Saturday afternoon, away from any potential eavesdroppers. Archie had wanted to talk to Shelly alone for a while, but it was difficult to get her by herself with 3 other people in their small tree house. When Granny had handed Shelly a list and told her to go to the store, Archie, seeing his opportunity had immediately volunteered to go with her. Both of them had been suspicious of his motives, as Archie usually hated shopping, but neither had found any reason to object, and so Archie set off along with Shelly to the store.

Forty-five boring minutes later (Shelly was always so thorough-she wasted so much time trying to find the right brand of curry paste) Archie had finally managed to drag her into a private spot. Shelly had been reluctant to go with him, and was now looking at him impatiently. "A secret? What mess do I have to help you get out of now?"

"I'm not in a mess," Archie said, ignoring her little dig at his problem solving skills. "I just need a favor from you and Calli."

"Uh-huh," Shelly said, rolling her eyes. "Well hurry up and tell me what it is. Granny's waiting for me."

"Yeah, yeah," Archie said, getting serious. "You remember that day I lost my sneakers?"

"How could I forget?" Shelly glanced down at his new blue sneakers. Granny had given them to him yesterday, after making him suffer the flip-flops for six days. "Thought you said a Goldeen ate them."

"Well yeah…they did get eaten. But not by a Goldeen." Archie scratched his chin, unsure of how to go about telling her this next part.

"I knew it. Archimore, what have you gotten yourself into?"

"Don't call me that!" Archie yelled. He didn't want to argue with Shelly before he even made his request, but her know-it-all tone always set his teeth on edge. He forced himself to calm down as he continued. "It was a Carvanha. A Carvanha attacked me and ate my shoes."

Shelly stared at him, mouth open in shock, speechless for once in her life. For a moment, they stood in silence until she regained control of her voice and said "A Carvanha? You expect me to believe that? I ain't Matt, I'm not gonna fall for whatever stupid joke you're trying to play on me."

"It's not a joke," Archie said, grabbing her by the shoulders. "There really is a Carvanha! And I'm gonna catch it! But I need you and Calli to help me." He tightened his grip on her shoulders, begging. "Please Shelly! I know you and Calli like to battle, and this will be good practice for when you leave home."

Shelly pulled away from him. "Yeah we like to battle the kids at school, but they've got like, Taillows and Zigzagoons! They can't bite through steel! Archie, you of all people should know how dangerous those things are!"

"Kamo Jr. is different! He's like one of Granny's puppies." Archie saw Shelly's eyes soften at hearing his nickname for the Carvanha, and he knew there was hope. "I've played with him every day this week, and he's never attacked me once. He just doesn't know his own strength sometimes."

"Archie…I don't know." She glanced down at Calliope, uncertainty in her voice. The Poochyena brushed against her legs, tail wagging.

"Shelly, I know you think this is crazy, but Kamo Jr. needs me. His old trainer just left him in that tiny pond all alone and he's gonna go nuts if he stays there much longer. We need to save him Shelly. It's the right thing to do." He swallowed. He hadn't realized just how sad Kamo Jr.'s situation actually was until he had said the words out loud.

Shelly was also moved by the Pokémon's plight, but she still had her doubts. "Do you even have anything to catch it with?"

Archie grinned. "Leave that to me," he said, patting his pocket. He had enough money in it to buy himself one of the more expensive Dive Balls.

Shelly nodded as she knelt down to Calliope's level, pulling the little pup close. "Say Calli and I do this for you, and you catch the Carvanha. Then what? Granny's not going to let you keep it in the house."

"I got a plan for that too. I'll let him out in the river everyday and keep him in his Pokéball the rest of the time. And when Granny finds out…I'll handle it when it happens." He smiled, knowing that he almost had her.

"What do you think, Calli? Should we do it?" Calli put her front paws on Shelly's chest and bark in affirmation, always ready for a battle. Shelly had chosen to wait until she graduated middle school before starting her journey around Hoenn, but she still enjoyed battling. She stood back up. "Alright, Archie. I'll help you. But if you're wrong, and this Carvanha turns out to be dangerous, we have to tell Granny."

"Thank you!" Archie hugged Shelly, then scooped up Calliope and gave her a kiss. "Okay, I'll meet you at the house in two hours. I gotta go get the Pokéball first." He rounded the corner of the building and headed out into the street.

Shelly called after him as he rushed off. "Archie! What do I tell Granny?"

"I don't know! You're smart, you'll think of something!"

* * *

Buying the Diveball should not have been an uncomfortable experience. The only shop that sold them was one of those specialty shops that normally catered to rich trainers, and it wasn't a place that Archie or anyone he knew frequented. He felt the sale clerk's suspicious glare follow him as he searched for the Diveball. Most people in Fortree City were accepting toward the community of Unovan immigrants and their descendents, but some, like the people who staffed this shop, were less kind. Archie had been unusually nervous as he handed his money to the clerk, who re-counted the money in a rather condescending manner. He snatched his purchase up and quickly left before anyone could accuse him of anything.

Well, the troublesome shopping trip would be worth it when Kamo Jr. was caught. He and Shelly were making their way towards the glade. "We're almost there," Archie said as he ducked under a branch. Shelly didn't respond, and Archie could feel the nervous energy coming off of her. "Kamo Jr.'s not gonna be any different from any other Pokémon you and Calli battled. 'Cept, you know, the whole water thing." His assurances didn't seem to be helping, so the two walked on in silence.

Kamo Jr. made his typical splashy entrance, and appeared pleased to see that Archie had brought along a new friend for him to play with. Archie gave the Carvanha a wave, which the fish tried to replicate with its pectoral fin. "You ready?" Archie asked, glancing at Shelly out of the corner of his eye. She took a deep breath, let it out, and appeared much more confident than she had a minute ago. She released Calliope, and the Poochyena barked, excited to start the battle. Kamo Jr. swam closer to the land, curious to see where this was going.

"Start with Howl, Calli!" Shelly ordered, watching as her Pokémon reared back her head and howled, the piercing sound echoing throughout the forest. Kamo Jr. sent a wave of water out towards her with his caudal fin in response. The howl ended in an embarrassing yap of surprise as the water hit. Her drenched fur bristled as Kamo Jr. laughed, not threatened in the least by his now angry opponent.

Archie tried and failed to repress his own laughter at Calliope's soaked state, which earned him a glare from Shelly. "Aw, c'mon," he said between giggles. "That was funny!" It wasn't like the water had hurt her, it was merely annoying.

Shelly let Calliope shake her fur dry before giving her next command. "Give it a taste of its own medicine! Use Sand Attack!" Calliope darted forward and kicked as much sand as she could at Kamo Jr. with her paws. The little grains of dirt got into the Carvanha's eyes, and he was forced to dunk his face in the water to get them out.

Shelly took the opportunity to attack while the Carvanha's dangerous jaws were under the water. "Quick, use Bite!" Calliope charged and jumped onto Kamo Jr.'s back, biting down hard. Archie winced, knowing how powerful a Poochyena's bite could be.

But Calliope didn't stay on Kamo Jr.'s back long before she screeched in pain and fell into to the water. "Calli!" Shelly and Archie darted to the edge of the pond as Calli swam over to them, whimpering miserably. Shelly pulled the pup up as soon as she was close enough to do so, distressed about her Pokémon's injuries and confused by what had gone wrong. "It's okay, it's okay," she consoled, hugging Calliope close and stroking her wet fur. There was blood on the Poochyena's fangs. Archie looked over to Kamo Jr., who was watching Shelly and Calliope with a strange expression on his fishy face. There were some teeth marks were Calliope had bit him, but he appeared to be fine otherwise.

"The rough skin…I forgot about his skin," Archie muttered softly, eyes downcast. Guilt was bubbling up inside of him.

Shelly stood up, tears streaming down her face as she clutched Calliope to her chest. "You forgot! How could you forget something like that, Archie? Calli's hurt now and…and…" She turned and fled, running out of the glade.

"I'm sorry, Shelly!" Archie shouted after her. He was about to follow, but then he stopped, turning to Kamo Jr. The Carvanha looked up at him, and the two made eye contact for a second before Kamo Jr. dived under the surface, out of sight.

Archie stood there, thinking about the hurt look in the Carvanha's eyes. He knew the pain hadn't come from Calli's bite. "I know you didn't mean it, Junior," he said, hoping that Kamo Jr. could hear him from beneath the water. Whether he had or not, the Carvanha did not re-surface.

* * *

Archie never found out how Shelly explained Calli's injured state to Granny. Shelly had always been better at making up excuses, though she rarely had to do so. All Archie knew was that Granny hadn't come tearing down his door, demanding to know where the Carvanha was, so he assumed that Shelly had kept his secret safe. Calliope, as it turned out, hadn't been injured too badly, nothing a simple potion couldn't take care of. Her yelps back at the glade had likely been due to shock more than anything else, and she was back to her old self within hours

Kamo Jr. appeared to have been more upset by the brief battle than Calliope had been. In the three days since the botched fight, the Carvanha had been subdued, a stark contrast to the more boisterous personality it had shown in the previous days. He would rarely breech the pond's surface, showing only his dorsal fins and eyes when he did come up. He glumly ate all the berries Archie threw at him, not showing any of his old enthusiasm for the game. He also refused to go anywhere near the pond's edge, keeping Archie at a distance.

It hurt Archie to see the Carvanha like this, and guilt gnawed at the edges of his stomach. He should have thought harder about what Kamo Jr. had been through already before having Shelly battle him. Kamo Jr. had clearly been hurt by his first trainer's abandonment, and it was obvious that he didn't want to go through the same pain again with Archie. But Archie wasn't Kamo Jr.'s first trainer, and he wasn't going to give up.

He couldn't. He knew that Kamo Jr. wouldn't be able to thrive in that pond. If boredom didn't drive the Carvanha mad, starvation definitely would. Archie didn't fool himself into thinking that the Carvanha subsisted only on the berries he fed it. Kamo Jr. had most likely been preying on the Goldeen and Magikarp that were native to the pond, and since there weren't a lot of them in there to begin, Archie knew that Kamo Jr. only had a few days at most before he ran out of his main source of food.

Which was why Archie was currently trudging through the forest with two Luvdisc filets tucked under his arm. The smell of the filets was strong, and Archie was grateful that most of the Pokémon who inhabited this part of the forest were herbivores. The smell didn't bother him at all-it reminded him of when his mother used to bring in her catch, fresh from the ocean. Luvdisc had been Daddy's favorite, and she always set some aside for him and Kamo when she could.

It had been a long time since Archie had eaten Luvdisc. Granny usually brought home the more local freshwater fish such as Barboach on the rare occasions she did buy fish. For good reason too-Luvdisc was expensive in the mainland cities. Archie had used up all his remaining allowance money to buy them. But it would be worth it, if it meant saving Kamo Jr. from his grim fate.

Archie took his sneakers off before entering the glade, as his plan didn't involve him destroying two pairs of sneakers within a week. As he walked closer to the pond, he could see the outline of Kamo Jr.'s form underneath the rippling water. He began unwrapping the brown paper packaging. "Hey Junior," he said as the spiky yellow dorsal fins peaked through the water. "Got something for you." He tossed one of the filets into the pond. Kamo Jr. sniffed in the meat's direction, before swimming over and gobbling it up in seconds.

"Like that buddy?" The Carvahna gazed up at him, hope and wariness warring in its eyes. Archie held up the other filet, giving it a shake. Kamo Jr. opened his mouth, ready to catch the filet, but Archie shook his head. "Uh-uh. You want this, you gotta come over here."

Kamo Jr. regarded the meat dangling before him, considering. Then he swam toward him slowly, gliding through the water gracefully. He stopped right at the bank, a bit uncertain at what Archie was planning, but hungry enough to go along with it.

Archie threw the other filet into the pond, harder than necessary. It sailed over the Carvanha and hit its back fin before landing just behind him. Kamo Jr. gave an irritated snort before turning its back to Archie and nabbing the filet.

That's when Archie launched his attack. He jumped on top of the Carvanha, the impact of his body dunking them both under the water briefly. Archie wrapped his arms around Kamo Jr.'s body, holding on as tight as possible. The rough, spiny scales scraped against his skin uncomfortably, even through the two long-sleeved shirts he was wearing.

Kamo Jr. thrashed, splashing up a storm, doing his best to force Archie off of him. Staying on was difficult- he outweighed Kamo Jr., but the fish was still physically strong. His back fin smacking against Archie's legs didn't help matters. Archie grabbed on to the dorsal fins above the Carvanha's eyes, just underneath their sharp points. "Not letting you go!" Archie shouted, suppressing a wince as the Carvanha thrashed harder. Kamo Jr.'s body brushed against his chin, and the brief scrape stung enough to loosen his hold slightly. He gritted his teeth against the pain. "Not 'til you let me catch you!"

Kamo Jr. paused at the words, and Archie thought that perhaps he had won. "Uh, wow, that was ea-" They shot forward, the turbulence so sudden and violent that Archie nearly lost his grip, barely hanging on to one of Kamo Jr.'s dorsal fins. He'd only just been able to get back on when Kamo Jr. propelled them forward again with his Aqua Jet. One second they were on the far edge of the pond by the tree line, the next they were back where Archie had initially jumped onto the Carvanha. Kamo Jr. did it a third time almost as soon as he had come to a stop.

By the fifth Aqua Jet, Archie's body had managed to adjust itself the extreme bursts of speed. Now that he wasn't struggling to hang on to Kamo Jr. for dear life, Archie could fully enjoy the experience of surfing through the pond water, moving faster than he ever had in his life. It was exhilarating, even in the small space they were confined to, and Archie was able to ignore the raw sting in his chest and arms.

Kamo Jr. must have been having fun as well, as he was no longer actively trying to buck Archie off. They zipped across and around the pond for a good while, both of them forgetting how they had ended up like this in first place. Archie knew that his Daddy must've felt the same lightness, the same freedom, the same euphoria whenever he surfed on Kamo that Archie was feeling now on Kamo Jr.

Finally, after what seemed like only seconds, Kamo Jr. came to a stop, exhausted. Archie lifted himself off the Carvanha's back, keeping on hand wrapped around his dorsal fin. He stroked the space between Kamo Jr.'s eyes with his free hand. "That was awesome!" he said as Kamo Jr. leaned into his touch. "Man, if we were in the ocean, that would've been like…ten times as amazing!"

Kamo Jr. looked up with interest at his mention of the ocean. Archie continued, eyes shining. "Have you ever seen the ocean? It's amazing. If you were my partner, I would take you to the beach in Lilycove with Granny, Matt, Shelly…and Jacques too, I guess." He got closer to Kamo Jr., speaking softly. "We could go to Pacifidlog town," he said. "The waves there are huge and it's all just ocean, far as anyone can see." He blinked back tears. This was the first time he had spoken about returning to his hometown in over a year. It hurt to think about all he had lost there, but it also gave him hope to talk about going back with Kamo Jr.

He pulled the Diveball out of his pocket, still miraculously there after all the fast-paced activity of the preceding minutes. "Junior," he said, and then laughed at little at how much he sounded like Granny. He began again: "Junior, you and I both know that you can't stay here forever." He held out the Diveball. "If you really don't want another trainer, I'll understand. I'll get my Granny, and we'll help you get back to the river on Route 119. But I'd really- hey!" Before he could finish, Kamo Jr. gently head butted the button in the center of the ball, and disappeared into it. The ball gave a single click and that was that-Kamo Jr. was his.

Archie stared at the ball in his hand dumbly before a grin broke out on his face. He did it! He laughed and fell back into the water, floating, unable to believe how easy it had been. Well, perhaps it hadn't really been easy. It had taken one Pokéball, one failed battle, and a whole bunch of stinging scrapes along his chest and arms before he had gotten Kamo Jr. to finally relent. But he did it! He stared up at the sky, hoping that his parents were seeing his moment of victory somehow and were proud of him. Yeah, he'd eventually have to tell Granny- but he'd worry about that roadblock and any others after celebrating this success.

* * *

The roadblocks had come much sooner than he had anticipated. First he had to return home without anyone seeing his soaked clothing. He dried off as best he could while at the glade, but sunlight could only do so much in a short amount of time. In order to avoid being seen by Granny or Jacques, he climbed up the tree that held their house and entered the room he shared with Matt through the window. Matt had stared at him as he crawled through the window, and Archie had to promise to show him 'something cool, cooler than anything else he had ever seen' in order to keep him silent about the damp state of his clothes.

The next one came when he had stripped out of his sodden shirt. His arms and chest were covered in raw, red scrapes that stood out against the dark brown of his skin. They had stung all the way back to the house, but Archie hadn't even considered that they would look that bad. Matt had become so upset at the sight of them that Archie had been forced to explain their origins. "Look, I can't show you him right now, cuz Granny's home, but tomorrow before school we can go to the pond and I'll release him, okay? Just don't say anything, Matt." Matt had nodded, swearing that he wouldn't spill the beans to anyone else.

As for Archie's skin problem…well, it looked like he would have to wear long sleeved shirts for the next few days if he didn't want Granny questioning him. He sighed, throwing on the only other shirt that he owned that would cover his injuries completely. It was going to be a pain, rotating between only three shirts, but hopefully he'd go unnoticed if he stayed out of sight.

Still, despite all the ways this could've gone wrong, things seemed to going alright. When he had come down to dinner, Granny hadn't greeted him any differently than she usually did. Jacques had wrinkled his nose and told Archie that he smelled like pond scum and fish, but that wasn't really any different from how he normally acted so Archie didn't worry about it. He made a face at Jacques and sat down between Matt and Shelly at the round dinner table.

Granny had made sinigang with Barboach and mixed vegetables. Conversation that night wasn't any different from any other night. Granny asked Matt, Shelly and Archie about school, and Archie was grateful that Shelly had dominated the conversation by telling Granny about some upcoming science project that she was working on, allowing him keep his head down and eat his food as quietly as possible. The last thing he wanted was to give Granny any reason to think there was anything was out of the ordinary with him.

The conversation shifted over to the kennels and Granny and Jacques began discussing the new batch of eggs. Most of the breeder jargon went over Archie's head, which was a good enough excuse for him to be keeping his mouth shut. Granny smiled in approval as he helped himself to a second helping- though Archie hadn't gained back all the weight he had lost in the months following his parent's death, she was still relieved to see he was getting his appetite back.

"Is it good tonight, Junior?" she asked, smiling sweetly as he shoveled the soup into his mouth. A little too sweetly. Archie nodded as he chewed a piece of okra, on his guard.

"I'm glad to hear that, Junior. I know how much you enjoy seafood. Got that Barboach at a good price too. Though…" She paused, holding her chin between her thumb and forefinger, thinking. "Mr. Pascual said something that struck me as awfully funny while I was buying it."

Everyone at the table stopped eating and looked at Granny, wondering which one of them was about to catch it. Archie, knowing it was him, sank down into his seat, the food in his mouth suddenly dry and flavorless. He swallowed. There was a few seconds of silence, before Matt, unable to bear it any longer, asked "What did he say, Granny?"

"He asked me if I had changed my mind about having Luvdisc for dinner tonight," she said, shaking her head as though she couldn't believe that Mr. Pascual would ask something that silly. "I said 'what are you talking 'bout? Why would I be having Luvdisc for dinner?' And then he said…" She paused for emphasis, and looked right at Archie with her sharp, penetrating gaze. "He said: 'well, your grandson bought some from me not an hour ago'."

Archie looked away, wanting very much to flee, but knowing that doing so would make things worse. His secret was already about to be revealed and there was no way around it. "Well," Granny continued, still looking at Archie. "I've been puzzling over the incident all day, wondering why on earth Mr. Pascual would make up such a strange story. Then Junior came to this here dinner table tonight smelling worse than the Slateport fish market."

Archie cringed, and then met Granny's eyes, preparing himself for the worst. "Junior," she said slowly. "We're going to finish dinner, and then you're going to show me whatever it is you were feeding those filets too." Then she went back to eating her dinner, as though nothing had happened. Jacques sent a smug look in Archie's direction, while Matt and Shelly sent concerned glances his way. Archie ignored them all as he forced himself to eat the food he was no longer hungry for.

The next few minutes were both too long and too short. Granny sent the three other children to their rooms as Archie remained seated, eyes downcast. "Alright Junior, let's get this over with." She stood up, motioning for Archie to get up as well. "Where is it?"

"It's in my room," Archie mumbled. He hoped Kamo Jr. would forgive him for breaking his promise so soon.

Granny's eyebrows shot up at the response. "What- how is it in your room? Junior, what in Rayquaza's name…" Granny pinched the bridge of her nose. "Go get it, boy. And be quick about it."

Archie rushed off to his room without another word. He stalked into his room, ignoring Matt's questioning look, and reached under his bed for Kamo Jr.'s Pokéball. He returned to Granny, holding the ball out, unsure of whether or not he should release Kamo Jr.

Granny, however, didn't need him to release the Pokémon in order to know what it was. She sighed heavily and said "It's a Carvanha, isn't it?"

Archie nodded silently, only mildly surprised by her accurate guess. "Well, let's see him. Let him out, Junior."

Kamo Jr. flopped on the hardwood floor a moment later, confused by his surroundings. He got stopped flailing around once he gained his bearings, and looked at both Archie and Granny, unsure at what exactly was going on. Granny knelt down to his level, stoically assessing the Carvanha. Archie's heart beat so fast he could almost hear it thumping in his chest, and he longed to explain himself. But he knew that it was best to keep silent and let Granny make her own judgment regarding the Carvanha's fate.

A torturous silence stretched between the three of them. Then Granny reached out and touched Kamo Jr.'s spiky head. "I knew you were up to something Junior. You've been acting mighty suspicious all week. Figured you had befriended a Pokémon you didn't want me to know about." Archie was about to ask how she had known when she continued. "But I never thought you'd have actually have gone ahead and captured it."

Archie swallowed. This was it. This was the end of his and Kamo Jr.'s partnership. He looked down at the Carvanha, tears in his eyes. _I'm sorry, Junior. I let you down._ Granny stood up, and put her hand on his shoulder, and he braced himself for her next words.

"I should have seen it coming. Your Daddy did the exact same thing." Archie's head snapped up, and he was shocked to see the sheen of tears in Granny's eyes before she blinked them back. "When your Daddy was your age, he came home one night holding this angry, flailing Carvanha in his arms, both of them all bloodied up. He refused to let that fish go, and we had no choice but to catch the thing. He named it Kamo, and I never saw him without that vicious looking fish at his side after that."

Archie's mouth hung open in shock. Daddy had never told him the story of how he and Kamo had met. "I named him Kamo. Jr,." he said, a smile coming onto his face. "You know, since I'm Archimore Jr., I thought it would be a good name." Granny smiled back at him, pride in her eyes.

They stood like that for a minute before Kamo Jr., snorted, annoyed at being ignored. Granny sobered, and a more serious expression came over her face. "Kamo Jr. is not allowed to battle under any circumstances. You will not take him to school with you, nor will you let him out without my permission. You will take him out to the river for exercise every day, and you must be back by dinner. You are not to ride on him without proper protection." She paused, thinking. "And you will not let Matt, or any of your friends at school ride him without an adult present. Have I made myself clear?"

"Crystal! Thank you, Granny!" He jumped into her arms, hugging her tightly, and then he knelt down to Kamo Jr. "You can stay, Junior! Granny's letting you stay! We're gonna be bros for life!"

Kamo Jr. spat water in his face, then laughed his strange little laugh as Archie sputtered. "Ke, ke, ke…"


	3. Chapter 1

I own nothing.

The scene just to the left of him would've been creepy had it not been so pitiful.

Archie didn't come to the _Tipsy Torkoal_ very often, as it was one of those sit-by-yourself-and-drunkenly-contemplate-your-failures-as-a-human-being kinds of places he'd usually avoided. He'd actually been on his way to _Jabillo's_ , his normal haunt, but had come here instead after realizing how little he wanted bright lights, loud music, and seeing people he knew right at this moment.

He'd just been on a date with Ushio, Izumi's perfectly nice, reasonably intelligent brother, and while the date hadn't been awful, it hadn't been good either, and by the end of it they had both known that there would be no second date. They'd parted amicably enough, but Archie couldn't help but feel a little depressed by how his first date in who knew how long had gone.

He'd walked into the _Tipsy Torkoal_ hoping to drink and mope about his lack of a love life in peace, and had been doing just that for the first ten minutes after his arrival. The bar was quiet, with only the sounds of a mostly ignored football game on the lone flat screen TV cutting through the silence. The interior was made up of dark colors and polished wood, which gave an appropriately somber atmosphere to the place. There were a few other people seated at the bar, though there was at least one stool between each patron, and nobody spoke to anyone other than the occasional request for more booze from the bartender, an equally terse, middle-aged man with a face like granite.

The closest thing to social interaction that Archie had experienced in this bar had occurred right after he ordered his beer. The man seated closest to him at the bar had given him a single lingering glance, his sharp black eyes going over him once before he turned back to his whisky highball and cigarettes. Archie had been a little unnerved by it, as the man's blank face hadn't revealed what he'd been thinking at all, but he ignored Archie afterwards, so Archie wrote the action off as mere curiosity and proceeded to wallow in his thoughts for the next ten minutes.

And then the creeper walked in.

He hadn't seemed like a creeper at first, just a bland-looking businessman in a suit looking to drown his sorrows after work. He was an older man, older than the bartender and certainly older than Archie, but not old enough to be considered a senior citizen. He had looked around the bar for a moment before walking over to Archie's neighbor and sitting in the stool to the left of him. This had struck Archie as odd, as there were plenty of other stools he could've sat at, and this really wasn't the sort of bar where you could sit and chat with strangers.

Archie thought he had it figured out when the man started speaking to his neighbor as though he knew him. It had appeared that they worked together, though the younger man didn't seem to want to talk to the older man at all. The younger man was a redhead with thick black glasses, with pale skin and dark eyes that gave him away as a foreigner, perhaps Kantoese or Jhotian. His clearly unwanted companion spoke to him a nervous, rapid Hoenni, but Archie couldn't tell how fluent the redhead was in the language, as he only responded with short, one-word answers. Something about the redhead was vaguely familiar to Archie, though he couldn't place where he would've seen him before. Archie had lived in Lilycove City for the past three years, and was reasonably sure that he hadn't run into the fellow until recently.

 _Maybe I've seen him at work?_ Archie thought as the two men talked (well, one man talked-the other looked like he was doing his best to ignore him). Archie and his team of divers were currently contracted by Silph Co. to keep the wild Pokémon away while they built their oil rig in the ocean north of the city. Archie had also been tasked by his employers to train future divers, as he and his team were not permanent employees. He knew for a fact that this man was not in his training class, but it seemed possible that he could be one of the many scientists he passed by on his way to the class.

 _He sure does look like an egghead, with those glasses,_ he thought as he observed the two men. Something in their conversation had changed while Archie had been racking his brain trying to remember where he had seen the redhead before. The older man was speaking more softly, while the redhead's expression had gone from annoyed to pissed and uncomfortable. The bartender frowned in their direction, but stayed well away.

Archie leaned forward, careful not to alert them to his eavesdropping. He could barely hear what the older man was saying, but he could see the redhead grinding his teeth from where he sat.

"I'm really glad I ran into you here," the older man said in a near whisper. "I've wanted to get to know you better for a long while." He leaned closer and put his hand on the redhead's arm, who immediately snatched it away. Archie felt a little sick to his stomach. _Ugh, that's nasty_ , he thought as he watched a man well into his fifties hit on a colleague that couldn't have been that much older than Archie himself. The redhead didn't even look at the other man as he lit another cigarette and took a long drag, blowing smoke out in an irritated huff.

The creeper, sensing that things were not going his way, tried a different tactic. "You know I…" he began, licking his lips. "I work for the Hoenn Environmental Authority. I could…" He paused, as though gathering up the nerve to say his next few words. "I could cause a lot of problems for Silph Co. and Dr. Choi if you aren't…nicer to me," he finished weakly, coercion obviously not his strong suit.

The redhead turned to look at him, pure disdain in his eyes. The threat had not impressed him one bit. "L-look," the creeper squawked, throwing his hands up defensively. "I apologize if I've offended you," he said, not sounding apologetic in the least. The redhead turned away again, taking another drag of his cigarette. "You're just…such a handsome young man," he continued, putting his hand on the redhead's knee. "I'd very much like to experience your body."

"What the fuck," Archie yelled, unable to sit by and watch this any longer. He laughed in disbelief. "That's got to be the worst line I've ever heard."

The man jumped and blushed, his face becoming a dark, unattractive red. He turned to glare at whoever dared to interrupt his pitiful attempt at seduction. His eyes narrowed upon seeing Archie, no doubt taking in his cheap, worn t-shirt, tattooed forearms, and scruffy beard. "Didn't anyone teach you that it's rude to eavesdrop? Mind your own business, thug."

Archie let out another laugh. "Yeah, my granny taught me that." He downed the rest of his beer and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. "She also taught me that it was a-okay to beat on men who creep on young guys in bars."

The man sputtered angrily, than shot up from his seat, pointing an accusing finger at Archie. "Do you have any idea who I am?" he shouted, outrage in his voice. "I can easily have you deported! I'm a government employee!"

Archie stood up as well, outwardly calm despite the anger rising within him. He strode over to the man, standing nearly toe-to-toe with him. The smaller man paled visibly, only now just realizing how much bigger and stronger Archie was compared to his own average build. Archie stared him down, watching as his expression went from dignified offense to panic. "I-I don't have time for this," he said, with as much composure as he could muster. He hastily grabbed the coat hanging off the back of the stool. "Expect to hear from the HEA within the week." He did not elaborate on what exactly Archie should expect to hear about.

The bartender snatched the man's arm before he could move toward the exit. "Hang on there, buddy," he said, and Archie had never heard the word 'buddy' spoken in such an unfriendly manner. "You're not going anywhere until this bill is paid." The bartender gestured to the half-finished whisky highball on the bar, suddenly abandoned by its drinker. A cigarette till smoldered in the ash tray next to it.

"I didn't order that!" the man screeched. He tried to pull away, but the bartender's grip was stronger than iron. "Let me go this instant!"

"That young fellow said that you'd take care of it," the bartender said, daring the other man to argue. "Made sense to me, seeing as how…friendly you seemed towards him."

"I'm a government employee! I'll have this place shut down!"

Not in the mood to hear anymore empty threats, Archie put down two 1,000 yen notes (far more than the cost of his beer, but Archie felt a bit bad for his part in bringing drama to a normally quiet bar) and made his exit. He could still hear the creeper and bartender arguing from outside the bar, but he ignored it. Instead, he looked around the street outside, hoping to find the redheaded stranger still lingering around the dimly lit Lilycove street. But there was no sign of him anywhere, so Archie gave up and walked home, feeling disappointed and unsure why.

* * *

He runs into the redhead again not three days later, outside that very same bar. This time he actually had been on his way to meet Matt and Izumi at _Jabillo's_ , wanting to unwind after his late-night training class. He'd been a bit startled upon seeing him, as for some reason, he never expected to run into him again (which was a bit silly-Lilycove was a big city, sure, but he presumably lived there, so why wouldn't he run into him again?).

The redhead was standing outside the bar, attempting to light the cigarette in his mouth. His lighter clicked ineffectually, clearly out of lighter fluid. Swearing quietly to himself, the redhead tossed the useless lighter into the alley next to the bar and searched through his jacket pockets, almost pouting in frustration.

There was something about that frustration that was strangely attractive to Archie, and this, coupled with man's nagging familiarity caused Archie to approach, albeit shyly. "Hey," he greeted as the redhead glanced up to see who had spoken to him. "Um, do ya need a light?" he asked, the words coming out more awkwardly than intended.

The redhead did not immediately answer, instead giving him a quick once over. Archie shuffled a little nervously. He usually had no problem talking to strangers, and was generally an outgoing guy, but the intensity of the man's gaze made him feel like he couldn't possibly measure up to his scrutiny. Then the corner of the man's lip went up, in what could've been a derisive smirk or an attempt at a polite smile, Archie couldn't tell. "Yeah, thanks," he said, and Archie had a feeling that it was the latter, though the redhead's dark eyes gave little away.

Archie reached into his pocket and grabbed his lighter, flicking it on and offering the flame to the redhead. The redhead put the cigarette between his index and middle finger and leaned forward, inhaling as the tip touched the flame. He pulled back and took a long, satisfying drag that made Archie's stomach twist as he watched. The redhead blew the smoke out between thin lips, not taking his eyes off of Archie, who in turn could not tear his gaze away even if he wanted to.

The weird staring contest went on for a few more seconds, cigarette smoke dissipating gracefully into the night air. Then the redhead broke the silence. "That's twice you've saved me."

The words were spoken with a perfect western Hoenni accent, and that took Archie by surprise, as he'd been so certain that this man was from outside the country. _Well duh, he could be mixed race or something_ , Archie thought, chastising himself for making assumptions. He should've known better-strangers were often making the same assumptions about him, given that his tall, muscular build and dark brown skin marked him as of Unovan descent.

Well, mistaken assumptions aside, he figured he better say something before he weirded the other man out. "Um, yeah," he laughed, rubbing the back of his neck. "No problem." Suddenly remembering the incident from a few days ago, he asked "Did that guy give you any more trouble?"

The redhead rolled his eyes. "Oh, tons of trouble," he said sarcastically. "My company is now teetering on the brink of ruin."

Archie laughed again, this time genuinely. "Yeah, he got me in trouble too. They're going to deport me back to where I came from any minute now," he said, shaking his head sadly. "It's gonna be a bitch driving back here from Pacifidlog town."

The redhead chuckled, and then pulled out his pack of cigarettes. "You want one?"

"Sure," Archie replied, despite the fact that he rarely smoked. He pulled one out of the offered pack, and suddenly realized that they were Numels. Unfiltered Numels. Practically death rolled up in a little white stick.

He put it in his mouth and lit it anyway, and immediately regretted the decision. The harsh, tarry taste was far stronger than those rare, hand rolled cigarettes that he occasionally shared with his foster brother Jacques, and the need to cough won out over his desire to look cool in front of this person he'd just met. "Ugh, Arceus," he hacked, waving the smoke away from his face. "How the hell do you smoke those things?"

"Ah, sorry," the redhead said, amused. "I suppose I should've warned you beforehand." He smiled for only half a second, but Archie had caught a brief glimpse of the redhead's teeth in that half-second. They were crooked, not terribly so, but just enough to make Archie curious. Plenty of people had crooked teeth, as a result of dental care being expensive, and many young trainers being on their own for long periods of time. This man, however, appeared nearly impeccable, from his straight posture, to his fashionably nerdy jacket and glasses, to his slicked back, perfectly styled hair, and it was hard for Archie to imagine him looking any other way.

The sight of those teeth made Archie desperate to know more. "My name's Archie," he said, holding out his hand before remembering that he still held the cigarette in it.

It did not deter the redhead at all. "I'm Max," he said, flicking away the remains of his cigarette. He took the one Archie still held, his fingers brushing against Archie's as he did so.

Suddenly, as though been hit by some errant Thunderbolt, Archie remembered exactly where he had seen this man before. "You work at Silph Co.," he said. "At the oil rig."

Max nodded. "I do." He didn't sound at all surprised by the observation.

"So do I. My diving team has a contract with them."

"I know. I've seen you around," he replied, and Archie hoped he would smile again so he could see those fascinating teeth once more. But he didn't. "You stand out quite a bit." He put the cigarette he had just taken from Archie, the one that had just touched Archie's lips, to his own mouth and inhaled, the tip of the cigarette glowing a hot, bright red.

Archie swallowed at the sight, feeling as awkward as he had when he had first approached Max. "I do?" he said, and it was like he was twelve years old and talking to his first crush all over again.

Max nodded, then inclined his head towards the entrance of the _Tipsy Torkoal_. "Let me buy you a drink," he said in a way that indicated that he knew Archie wouldn't say no. "I promise I won't trick you into drinking something you won't like." There was the barest hint of a smile (unfortunately close-lipped) on his face.

"Uh, yeah," Archie replied automatically. "Why not?" He followed Max into the bar, hoping that Matt and Izumi wouldn't give him too much shit for standing them up the next day.

* * *

One drink became two, then four, and before Archie knew it he was on his back in his bed, Max on top of him, practically bouncing on his cock.

They were at his apartment, a mid-size flat not far from the Lilycove coastline (expensive considering its size, but the close proximity to the sea made the extra cost worth it). They'd been going at for…Arceus, Archie didn't know how long at this point. He'd lost all concept of time shortly after Max had pushed him back onto his bed and unzipped his pants.

Right now, he wasn't thinking about time, or anything other than Max at this moment. Max's eyes were screwed shut, his hands gripping Archie's biceps as he moved. His tongue darted out for a second to lick his lips, and that alone nearly made Archie finish right then and there.

He didn't though, which was something of a small miracle given how little control it felt like Max was allowing him to have. Max had led from the moment they had entered his apartment, which was unusual for Archie-every other partner he'd ever had had let him take the lead. But tonight was different, mostly because Max was wildly different from the other lovers he'd had before, in that he didn't know him at all. One night stands were not common for Archie, and he was hardly one to jump into to bed with someone he'd just met. In that brief time he'd known the other man, however, Max had proven himself to be full of surprises and mysteries, and something about that was bizarrely attractive to him. The fact that he dominated in the bedroom was even more out of the ordinary, which just made Max all the more appealing.

Archie lay on his back, for the most allowing Max to do whatever the hell he wanted. One of his hands was clutching the bed sheets, the other on Max's hip, his dark fingers squeezing the other man's pale skin hard enough to bruise.

With his clothes on, Max had seemed like a typical, too-busy-to-eat skinny scientist, but Archie had been surprised to see how toned he actually was once the redhead had taken his shirt off (though he was nowhere near as buff as Archie). And his legs…Archie let go of the sheets and moved his right hand to Max's thigh, caressing the firm, muscular flesh.

The touch spurred Max to move faster, and Archie knew that there was no way he could last more than one or two minutes at this rate. Thankfully, Max appeared to sense this as well, as he removed Archie's hand from his thigh and placed it on his erection. Archie stroked the shaft quick and hard, instinctively keeping pace with the movement of Max's hips. He kept stroking, occasionally swirling his thumb around the tip of Max's cock, until Max finally came with a breathless, satisfied cry. Archie gave one more thrust up into Max's tight heat before finally allowing himself to climax, relieved that he managed to keep up with Max as long as he had.

The two remained in that position for a couple seconds, Max still on Archie's softening dick, both of them breathing heavily and sticky with sweat. Then Max lifted himself off of Archie and out of the bed in one fluid motion, something that Archie thought was pretty impressive, considering that he felt so boneless and exhausted that he was sure he wouldn't be able to move again until next week. He watched blearily as Max walked over to the bathroom adjacent to his bedroom without a single glance back to the man he'd just ridden into a near coma.

Had he not been blessed out on endorphins, Archie might have been offended by Max's seeming dismissal. But he was still riding high on post-coital chemicals, and possibly a little tipsy, so the action didn't bother him as much as it probably would come morning. Gathering all his remaining energy, Archie reached out with his right hand to slip the condom off of his dick, before realizing that it was still covered in sticky, white cum. _Oh,_ he thought blandly and he pulled the rubber off with his clean hand, careful not to put his right hand on his sheets (though, really, he'd have to wash them anyway, being as sweat-soaked as they were). He tossed the used condom into the wastebasket by the nightstand and grabbed the closest piece of cloth available off the floor to wipe his hand (which turned out to be his t-shirt. Yet another thing he'd worry about in the morning). Satisfied that he was not lying in his own spunk, Archie fell back into his bed, closing his eyes as the sound of his shower running pulled him into sleep.

The next morning, he was disappointed, but not shocked to find that Max had left before he woke, not leaving a single trace of himself behind in Archie's room.


	4. Chapter 2

I own nothing.

"Hey! You there!"

You There was certainly not Archie's name, but the words were shouted with such panic that Archie turned to look at whoever was yelling them anyway. A portly, baby-faced man of ambiguous age was jogging up to him as fast as he could on his little legs, clutching a thick, tan file. He stopped in front of Archie, looking up at him with nervousness in his bright blue eyes. "You're the diving instructor, right?" he asked quickly, and before Archie could so much as nod, thrust the file towards him. "Can you drop this off to Mr. Tsukuda on your way to your class? He should be in the lab right by the training room."

"Yeah," Archie said, taking the file from the other man's small hands. "Sure, that's not a problem."

The fellow let out a breath, looking visibly relieved. "Thanks," he said, his smile making him look almost like a teenager. "I owe you one."

Archie hadn't agreed to take the file for this guy's sake, but he appreciated his gratitude nonetheless. "Like I said, it's no trouble."

"You don't understand, that Tsukuda guy is…" The man sighed, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. "He's a real piece of work. Er-not that he's…uh, well I don't think he'll mess with a guy that looks like…you." He looked up at Archie, fearful that the other man would rescind his offer to deliver the file in light of this new information.

Archie decided to put the little man's worries to rest before he had a panic attack. "I'm sure I can handle one scrawny scientist. If he tries anything I'll just toss him in the ocean."

The man laughed, fears assuaged. "We'd all be in your debt if you did that. My name's Malit, by the way. Thanks again." He gave Archie a pat on the shoulder before turning around and walking off, his gait much lighter now that he'd been relieved of his burden.

Archie flipped the file open and, upon realizing that the front page was full of geological jargon he didn't understand, closed it. Archie had a pretty good head for math, and his own career required him to have a decent understanding of physics, but earth science had never been one of his strong subjects. The paper's tiny print certainly hadn't made him any more interested in reading its contents. _No wonder all the scientists here need glasses._

The thought of glasses brought the image of one very specific pair to his mind, and he was instantly reminded of why he had taken the file, and it certainly hadn't been to be nice, or to curry favors from anxious, overworked scientists. Though he hadn't mentioned it during their tryst last week, Tsukuda was Max's last name. Reading that on his name badge had startled him a bit- he'd lived next door to a woman named Tsukuda back in Fortree city. Max had walked away before Archie could ask about any possible relation, and that brief moment in the hallway had been the most interaction he'd had with Max in the last week.

Truth be told, Archie felt a little sour about that, even if he could understand where Max was coming from. This was Archie's first real job in a professional setting, but even he knew that workplace relationships could be pretty risky business. Max probably didn't want to deal with any unnecessary drama, and Archie could respect that. But…did he have to be such a jerk about it? Archie didn't see Max that often, and he only passed him by occasionally when they were both working late, but Max mostly pretended that he didn't even see Archie. It was like he was saying "hey, thanks for letting me use your dick, now fuck off and don't ever talk to me again." Precisely the reason Archie usually avoided one night stands.

It was a shame. Archie wouldn't say that he was pining over Max, or that he actually wanted a relationship with him, but it would've been nice to have at least been friends with him. He'd seemed like a genuinely interesting guy, and Archie wouldn't have minded getting to him better. Still wouldn't, which was why he was standing in front of Lab 1A. There was a twisting in his gut as his hand hovered over the doorknob, a nervous feeling fluttering up inside him. He considered just slipping the file under the door and running away as fast as he could to the safety of his classroom. _Stop being such a yellow-belly. He's not a fucking Seviper._ With that in mind, he turned the doorknob and entered the lab before his cowardice could return.

Lab 1A resembled an office more than a proper lab, with its warm beige walls and carpeted floor. It was one of the smaller labs, not cramped but cozy, with three desks off to the left side, and one long table covered in rocks set up across from the door. Above the table was a map of the Sapiro Sea, dotted with thumbtacks of various colors. Next to the table was a small grey sink. A massive machine took up the right side of the room, but Archie didn't know what it was or what it did.

 _Shelly would probably know,_ he thought absently as he stood in the entrance. Max was standing in front of the table, his back to the door, and if he had heard Archie enter he gave no sign of it. At first, Archie had thought that Max was too focused on whatever he was doing to have noticed Archie's arrival. Then he sighed in irritation. "Close the door," he snapped without even turning his head.

 _We're off to a great start._ Archie shut the door, mentally noting that this was the first time he had heard the other man speak since last week. He didn't remember his voice sounding so nasally. A couple of seconds passed, and Max still hadn't bothered to acknowledge Archie's existence. Sick of feeling awkward around Max, Archie let himself get angry at the situation. Malit had been right-this guy was a piece of work. A piece of work with great legs and sexy glasses, but still rude as hell. Archie refused to budge, or make even the slightest noise until Max at least turned around to look at him.

A minute passed, and just when Archie was starting to feel ridiculous, Max asked "Is there something you need?" Archie's reply didn't' come fast enough for Max's taste, so he finally turned around, rolling his eyes as he did so. "What do you want, Ma- oh." The annoyed expression on his face dissolved the second he saw Archie there, his eyes going wide behind his thick-rimmed glasses for a split-second before settling into bland politeness. "I thought you were somebody else," he said by way of apology.

Now Archie really did feel ridiculous. _Of course he thought I was somebody else. Am I even allowed in here?_ "I just wanted to drop this off," he said, stepping forward to offer the file.

In an instant, Max's irritation returned, a scowl appearing on his face. "Why do you have that?" he asked accusingly, though Archie had a feeling that the accusation wasn't directed at him. He took the file from Archie (and he couldn't ignore how their fingers brushed, albeit unintentionally) and just glared at it, not even opening it to see its contents. Archie wondered if should offer his lighter too, as Max looked very much like he wanted to set the thing on fire.

"I already know what this says," Max said, focus still on the file. "If this was good news, Malit or Reyes would've just delivered it themselves." He took his glasses off and without them Max suddenly looked one thousand times more exhausted, as Archie could see the bags that had formed under his eyes. "I've been working thirty-six hours straight," he said, a strained half-smile on his face. "I can't look at this right now." And with that, he tossed the file carelessly to the side, the papers spilling out and scattering to the floor.

The action was extremely unprofessional, and wholly inappropriate for a man of Max's position and educational background. It was also an incredible turn-on for Archie, that little flash of temper emerging from Max's cool exterior. Max's leaned against the table, unconcerned about the mess of papers he'd eventually have to reorganize. The first two buttons on his long-sleeved shirt were undone, and his bangs were swept messily to the side instead of slicked back, giving him a slightly disheveled appearance. _He does look likes he's been working for thirty-six hours_. It wasn't a bad look for him at all.

Archie's gaze drifted to Max's right arm, his attention caught by a curling line of purple ink exposed by his rolled up sleeves. Max crossed his arms before Archie could get more than a quick glance. "Why did you bring this to me?"

The blunt question threw him off, and Archie scrambled to find an answer that wasn't 'I wanted an excuse to talk to you.' He settled on a rather pathetic "Well, it was on my way, so I figured I may as well be friendly and help that Malit fellow out."

Max scoffed, rolling his eyes again. "You're not an errand boy. And you know that." He tilted his head to the side, scrutinizing Archie from head to toe, as though the truth was written somewhere on his body.

 _The hell with it._ "I wanted to see you again," he admitted, shrugging his shoulders.

Max clearly hadn't been expecting him to say it so plainly, as his mouth dropped open a bit, and his cheeks turned pink. He was at a loss for words, that much was obvious, and Archie felt like he had just won an important victory. He took a step forward towards Max, then another, closing the short distance between them.

They stood, not yet touching, but the atmosphere was so thick with tension that they may as well have been. Max was almost as tall as Archie, so they were eye to eye at this point. Max took one look at the closed door, then looked back at Archie with an unreadable expression on his face. "Did you think that I wanted to see you again?" he asked blandly.

The question snatched his short lived victory away, and Archie thought that he'd made a huge mistake. But as he opened his mouth to stammer out an answer he didn't have, Max grabbed his t-shirt, tugged him close and crushed his lips to Archie's.

Confusion reigned in his mind as Max's hands wandered from his chest to his head, and all intelligent thought ceased when he felt his bandana being torn off and fingers running through his hair. He leaned into the kiss, wrapping his arms around Max to pull him closer. He felt his tongue slide against Max's, wet and slippery, and he let his hands roam the slender body against him, feeling Max's heat through the fabric of his clothes.

Archie swiped his tongue along the uneven edges of Max's teeth, feeling himself grow harder, his cock straining against his jeans. He grinded his hips against Max's, groaning as he felt Max's erection through his slacks. They broke apart for air, and then Archie picked him up and put him on the table, the rock samples rattling as they kissed again. Archie deepened the kiss, putting himself between Max's spread legs.

He broke the kiss and put his lips to Max's neck, sucking hard at his pulse. Max let out a breathless moan, one hand clutching Archie's shoulder. He put his other hand on the table to brace himself and…

"Fuck!" _Oh. That didn't sound hot._ "Get off of me," Max growled, bucking Archie off of him, blood dripping down his hand. Archie looked over at the rocks on the table, some of them actually very sharp, and suddenly remembered where they were. _Shit. What the hell was I thinking? What was he thinking?_ He watched as Max cleaned his injured hand in the sink and muttered swears to himself.

"Are you okay?" Archie asked, looking around the lab for a first-aid kit. He found none.

"I cut my fucking hand on a fucking rock," Max snapped, his irritability back in full force.

Archie frowned. "Is there a first-aid kit around here somewhere?"

"I have some bandages in my desk," Max replied, his tone a bit gentler. He was drying his hand off with a paper towel. He examined the still bleeding wound. "It's not that bad," he said as he moved past Archie towards his desk. "Don't worry about it."

"Are you sure you don't need any help?"

"I can take care of myself, thank you very much," Max said as he opened one of the desk drawers and pulled out a roll of bandages. "Don't you have a training class? You need to get going," he pointed out when Archie didn't immediately leave.

"Oh shit, you're right." According to the clock on the opposite wall Archie's class began in less than twenty minutes. He looked down at himself, relieved that Max's injury had killed the mood. "I…uh, I guess I gotta go. You good?"

"Yes."

"Okay, I'll see ya around," Archie said as he made his way out of the lab, feeling awkward once again.

"Wait!"

Archie stopped, hand on the door knob. He turned his head to face Max, who was looking at him with uncertainty. He seemed to be feeling just as awkward as Archie was which made him feel a bit better about the situation.

A short silence stretched between the two men, and Max looked like he was debating whether or not he should actually say whatever it was he wanted to say. "What are you doing after your class tonight?" he finally blurted out as he began wrapping his hand with the bandages.

Archie grinned.

* * *

Archie couldn't tell if Max was holding the incident in the lab against him or not. On the one hand, Max had been willing to wait for his class to end (though he played this off by claiming that he had needed to reorganize the file he had thrown) to accompany him back to his apartment. One the other hand, he was currently fucking him so hard from behind that Archie was certain that Max was trying exact some sort of vengeance for his injured hand.

If that was the case, than Max was doing a poor job of getting revenge. Archie was on his hands and knees, but he was pretty sure that he would collapse from sheer ecstasy any second now. Every single one of Max's thrusts seemed to hit that spot within him that made his toes curl up in pleasure, and to make things more interesting, Max had his hand on his cock, stroking slowly and teasingly.

This time he knew that there was no way that he could outlast Max, not with all of this stimulus coming at him at once. But he didn't feel like he needed to this time around. Max was one-hundred percent in control, and there was nothing Archie could do, or to wanted to do, to change that.

Archie came after a particularly hard hit, throwing his head back and nearly screaming as he rode out his orgasm. Max's thrusts sped up, as though he was only just now focusing on his own pleasure, and Archie pitched forward onto his elbows, his ass in the air. Max didn't last long, which Archie was grateful for- he was pretty sure that he would've passed out if that assault had continued.

Max himself seemed to pass out after withdrawing from Archie's body, laying himself against Archie's back. They lay like that for a moment, catching their breathes, until Max got up and rolled off the bed, slipping the condom off and throwing it away as he headed off to Archie's bathroom.

Archie was even more exhausted than he had been after the first time they'd had sex, but he forced himself to get out of bed anyway, mainly because he did not want to fall asleep while there was still semen drying on his sheets. He grabbed some tissues and wiped up the mess as best he could and threw them in the wastebasket. He then got back into the bed and waited for Max to come out of the shower, keeping himself awake through sheer force of will.

Max emerged ten minutes later, still a bit damp. He hadn't bothered with a towel, likely because he hadn't considered that Archie might still be awake. "Oh," he said, startled at seeing Archie reclining against the headboard. He looked so similar to a Poochyena that had been caught doing something bad that Archie laughed.

Max's eyes narrowed at the laugh, but he didn't say anything as he bent over to pick up his boxers and put them on. Archie watched, trying to think of some slick line that would convince Max to stay at his apartment just a little longer. "You can stay if you want," he said, figuring that honesty had worked on Max pretty well so far. He certainly appeared to be considering it, as he'd paused after picking up his pants, though Archie couldn't tell what kind of thoughts were going on behind those dark eyes. After a few moments of deliberation, he shrugged, pulled something out of the pocket of his pants, and then folded them neatly before settling them on top of Archie's dresser. He repeated the process with the rest of his clothing, put his glasses back on, then joined Archie on the bed.

The object in his hand turned out to be a lighter and a pack of cigarettes. But when he tried to shake one out of the pack, nothing came out. "Shit. I forgot I was out," he said, frustrated. He sat back against the headboard, blowing out an annoyed huff of air.

"I've got some cigarettes," Archie said, leaning over the edge of the bed to grab a box from underneath it. Max eyed the plain wooden box a bit skeptically, and he actually laughed when Archie opened it. "Are you fucking serious?"

Archie didn't know what was so funny. In the box was a plastic baggie half-full of bright green tobacco, with a few cigarettes already rolled up in brown paper. "What's wrong?"

Max stared at him in utter disbelief before laughing again, this time even harder. Archie felt like he was missing something, but it was nice to hear Max's laugh for real this time- it was high-pitched, and a bit raspy, but it was genuine and completely unrestrained. Archie liked it when Max was unrestrained. It also gave him an excellent view of Max's teeth, though Archie knew that he would've immediately stopped had he known that fact.

His laughter subsided a couple seconds later, though there was still a teasing smile on his face. "Do you really not know what this is?" He picked up the little baggie and shook it.

"It's not tobacco?"

"Have you ever seen tobacco this green?"

Archie thought for a moment. "My brother said it was just…really fresh?"

Max lost it again at Archie's admittedly stupid answer. Archie knew that he should've felt embarrassed, but he found himself grinning, unable to feel upset. "C'mon man, what is this stuff?"

"It's Sage."

 _Sage?_ Archie vaguely remembered seeing that word on a package of herbs. "Isn't that stuff you cook with?"

"No, no, it's not sambong," Max snickered. "It's actually called Sage. It's a drug from Unova. I don't think it's very well known over here, though."

Archie had never heard of it before. "Yeah, my brother did say that was where he got it." Jacques had told him that he had bought the stuff at a specialty shop while he was in Castelia City for a breeder's conference.

"He's lucky he didn't get caught with this." Max put down the bag and picked up one of the rolled cigarettes. "I take it that you haven't actually smoked any of these?"

"No, I'm not really much of a smoker to be honest. He gave it to me as a joke."

"This joke could've landed him in a Unovan prison for a ridiculous amount of time," Max remarked, putting the blunt between his lips. If that was true, Archie would have to remember to beat Jacques' head in for risking himself for a gag gift. "Well, since it's already here," Max said, as he lit the stick, "I may as well indulge. It's been ages since I've had one of these." He took a hit, held it, then exhaled, looking more relaxed than Archie had ever seen him. He offered it to Archie, who took it between his middle finger and thumb.

He considered the blunt for a second, then put it in his mouth and inhaled. The taste was a lot lighter than that awful _Numel_ he'd had last week, and Archie was easily able to smoke it without coughing. He blew the smoke out. "That's not bad," he said, passing it back to Max.

Max had already taken another one out of the box, so Archie just kept it. He had to admit, this was possibly the nicest thing he'd ever smoked. There was a pleasant buzz spreading throughout his body, which, coupled with the sex he'd just had, was making him feel practically boneless. "What is this stuff?"

"I just told you what it was." Max rolled his eyes, but he was smiling, so he must not have been that annoyed.

"No, I mean, what is it really?"

"You're not making any sense," Max snickered before he took another hit.

"Like, where does it come from?"

"It's from Unova."

At this point Archie realized that Max was likely fucking with him, but he continued his line of questioning anyway. "Like…what is…what kind of plant is it?"

The question had come out sounding dumber out loud than it had in his head, but Max seemed like he was actually going give a real answer this time. "It's not really a plant? Or is it?" Max put his glasses on his head; as though doing so would help him articulate better. "There's this Pokémon native to Unova called Pansage. The leaves," he explained, gesturing to the baggie still in the box, "come from the Pokémon's head."

Archie gave Max a long, skeptical stare, waiting for the other man to admit he was joking. When he didn't, Archie said "C'mon man, you think I'm gonna believe that?" He shook his head. "That's complete bilge."

"I swear, that's the truth. I couldn't make something like that up if I tried." Max gently grazed the edge of the blunt along the box, leaving a small smear of ash on the wood. "Look it up on your phone."

Archie did, and found that Max was telling the truth about the drug's origin. "What the fuck," he said, taking the blunt out of his mouth and staring at it in horror. "This came from a monkey's head?"

"It did indeed," Max replied, thoroughly amused by Archie's reaction.

"I can't believe this came from a little monkey's head, and you didn't tell me."

"You didn't ask."

"Yes I did! I asked you what it was but you kept actin' like you didn't know what I was talking about!" Max had begun laughing halfway through Archie's complaint, but Archie was too offended to care. "This whole thing's just fucking me up. A monkey's head, man."

"Look at it this way," Max said when he regained control over himself. "You eat fish, right?" Archie nodded and Max continued. "Aren't fish filets just like…parts that came off of a fish?" Max's brows furrowed in thought. "That comparison made more sense in my head."

"Nah, I get what you're saying," Archie conceded, a bit calmer now. "So, what? Do they just pluck the leaves right off the monkey? Does it hurt them?"

"No, supposedly the leaves just fall off on their own." Max snuffed out the small stub of his blunt and picked up another one. "I've seen a few Pansages before, and it doesn't seem like it does them any harm."

Archie nodded, mulling the words over before shrugging and taking a hit. "You've been to Unova?" he asked, the pleasant buzz returning as he exhaled.

Max was quiet for a moment, as though thinking carefully about his next answer. He held the blunt in front of his face as he thought, and Archie took the opportunity to examine the tattoo on his right forearm. A dark, purple ink spiraled up to his elbow in the shape of a snake, though Archie couldn't tell what type, as the serpent's head was covered by the bandage on Max's hand. _That explains the long sleeved shirts, I guess._ But nobody at work had said anything about his own heavily tattooed arms, and he was hardly the only one who had them. _Maybe he just doesn't want people asking about it._

Max's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "Yeah, I went there a couple years ago." He noticed where Archie's gaze had drifted and shifted uncomfortably. Archie decided now wasn't the time to ask about the tattoo.

Besides, there was something else he was interested in. "My granny's from Unova, but I've never been there myself." The honest truth was that while he had travelled all over Hoenn, he'd never even been to Kanto or Johto, let alone somewhere as far off and foreign as Unova. "What's it like? Is it as…you know, as dangerous as people say?"

"Depends on where you're at," Max responded. "If you're in the Castellian back alleys, sure, there's a good chance you might get attacked or shot at. But most places are actually pretty safe." Max thought for a second, and then added "It's just like any other country really. Except more guns, I suppose." He looked at Archie and gave him one of those lingering glances that he was rapidly becoming accustomed to. Just when he was about to ask if Max wanted to go another round, the other man spoke. "You said your grandmother is Unovan?"

"Uh, yeah," Archie said, discomfort overcoming his buzz. "I'd rather not talk to about her while naked, though."

Something about that statement struck Max as hilarious, and he began to crack up. "I only asked one question. That hardly counts as 'talking about her,'" Max said between laughs.

He had a point, but Archie still wasn't up to talking about the woman who had raised him while high and naked with the man he'd just had sex with. He told Max as much, which prompted even more giggles from the redhead.

"I have to admit," he said as Archie lit up another blunt (because why not?). "I'm glad I stayed. Work has been such fucking shit lately, and this was just what I needed."

Warmth at the honest words fluttered up inside Archie's body, though he wasn't happy that Max was so stressed. "You looked pretty pissed off about something today," he said, recalling how Max had casually tossed aside the file without even opening it.

"Pissed is putting it very mildly," Max remarked, suddenly sounding sober. He took another hit, and continued. "We fucked up big time."

"How so? Did ya break something?"

"Nothing like that," Max sighed, all of his weariness coming out in that breath. "My job right now is to map out promising sites for resource extraction. But since my team is full of idiots who can't listen," he gritted out, tapping the blunt harder against the box than he likely meant to. "We missed the spot and found very little oil." He seemed to be speaking more to himself than to Archie at this point. "I told them that they were fucking wrong. But since I'm the youngest, and have the least experience, they didn't listen to me. Now we look stupid, and I've probably lost any potential bonus I could have acquired." He ran a hand through his messy hair. "It's a good thing you delivered that file, because I am reasonably certain that I would've murdered Malit."

Archie took a contemplative hit from his blunt, trying to think of something that would make Max feel better. "Well, they all seem pretty terrified of you now. Malit looked like he was going to piss his pants when he talked to me. I hope that helps."

A smile had formed on Max's face at the mention of a frightened Malit. "It does, actually," he said.

"Maybe they'll start listening to you now."

"Maybe. Though it doesn't change the fact that I've lost a good deal of money."

Archie made a dismissive noise at that. "Don't you eggheads make like a million yen per year?"

"You can never have too much money," Max replied. He slumped back against the headboard, looking dejected. "I don't want to talk about this anymore. I might have a stroke." But a second later, he said "I only accepted this job to pad out my resume. I'd much rather work at a University. But they're hard to get into if you haven't been in the educational system for years, and have no field experience. I don't even like the ocean."

"What? You don't like the ocean?" Archie said, shocked. "How can you call yourself a Hoenni if you don't like the ocean?"

"I'm from Lavaridge Town," he said, as if that explained everything. "No ocean there."

Western Hoennis were a bit on the strange side, but Archie had a different theory for why Max disliked the ocean. "I bet you get seasick easily."

"I do not!" he said, outraged by the accusation.

"Yes you do!" Archie poked Max's chest teasingly. "Your face is getting all red."

Max pushed Archie's finger away and gave him a little shove. "I don't get seasick!" he repeated, though there was little anger in his voice. "I just don't get how you can like something that…you can't even breathe in!"

"You can't breathe in a volcano either, but I bet you just love those."

"You can if you're wearing the right suit."

"Wha- it's the same with the ocean, you nerd." Archie gave Max a baffled look. "Did ya think that we dove in bathing suits?"

"Oh. I forgot about those."

The toneless way Max had spoken sent Archie into peals of uncontrollable laughter, with Max following shortly after. "That was quite possibly the dumbest argument I've ever lost," Max said, snuffing out his second blunt.

"I don't even really know what this stuff is supposed to do," Archie said, still laughing. "But man, I can already tell you're a lightweight. 'I forgot about those.'" Archie shook his head, grinning. "Arceus, Maxie, what the hell am I gonna do with you?"

A strange expression had come over Max's face just then, and Archie thought that he may have overstepped some unspoken boundry. He wondered if Max would protest use of the nickname, if he would get mad or even leave.

But he didn't.


	5. Chapter 3

I own nothing

Sharpedos weren't the most popular of surfing companions.

For one thing, their bodies were covered in sharp, spiny scales, that, while not agonizingly painful, were still quite uncomfortable to the touch, and the rider was always guaranteed to have some mild skin irritation afterward.

Without their rough skins, Sharpedos were still a generally vicious, temperamental lot. Not everyone could handle their natural ferocity, and stories abounded of even experienced trainers losing limbs to the powerful jaws of an agitated shark. Even Carvanha's, their pre-evolutions, could bite through steel.

All that aside, even if one were to, by some miracle, obtain a placid Sharpedo with scales smoother than a Dratini, the prospective rider would have to be able to hold on tight. Sharpedos were among the fastest swimmers in the world. They could swim up to 120 km/h at their speediest, with some of the more extreme specimens topping out at a whopping 200 km/h. To make matters worse, it seemed like they didn't know how to slow down, either. You could scream for a Sharpedo to 'stop moving so butt-fuckingly fast you motherfucker' at the top of your lungs, but at best, they'd maybe tone it down to 95 km/h before bucking your lily-livered ass off their backs.

And on top of all that, if you were able to hang on to a Shapedo despite all of these variables, you'd be in for an incredibly short ride, because Sharpedo's tired out quickly and easily. Attempting to surf through Route 130 and 131 on one would be borderline suicidal, as a Sharpedo would be likely to just leave the rider stranded in the ocean while it rested.

Needless to say, most Hoenni's preferred to travel on the gentler, more stable Wailmer and Whishcash then on the potentially deadly Pokémon often called 'the bully of the sea.' Archie had surfed with both of the aforementioned Pokémon and many others (even a Linoone during a bizarre outing on Route 108), but he could say with confidence that not even Kyogre itself could compare to riding with Kamo Jr.

His longtime companion was doing what he did right now, cutting through the waves just off the Lilycove shore, like a knife slicing through an oran berry. Archie stood on Kamo Jr.'s back, holding onto the tall, notched dorsal fin with ease. The Sharpedo's above average size and Archie's strength and protective water shoes allowed the two to maintain this position for as long as Kamo Jr. was able to keep going.

It was morning, early enough so that the stars were still in the sky, and the only indication of the coming dawn was the light pink spreading across the horizon. The Lilycove tourist season was long over, as it was late fall, so the beach was deserted for the most part. This suited Archie just fine. Usually he and Kamo Jr. didn't mind showing off their skills to complete strangers, but he'd come to the beach this morning to relax after what may have been one the most stressful weeks of his life.

The feel of the wind whipping against his face, and the taste of the salty spray of the ocean on his lips was exactly what he'd needed after all the bullshit he was dealing with at work. It wasn't the actual work itself that was difficult. He and his team of divers (all of them expert water Pokémon trainers) were supposed to do one thing- keep the wild Pokémon native to the Sapiro Sea from damaging the expensive machinery and 'interrupting operations', as the woman who had contracted them put it. And they were doing just that. Anytime a Pokémon wandered within the site limits, one of the divers would chase it back to where it came from. Usually the Pokémon would swim off without protest, but some (namely the Tentacools) seemed to revel in the chance to fight. But there hadn't been any serious altercations in the weeks since the team's hire, and Archie considered that to be a job well done.

Apparently his bosses disagreed. "You need to be more aggressive," one of them, a stern blonde woman whose heels always clicked loudly on the tile floor had said. "The supervisors say that you guys are chasing the same Pokémon off day after day. We can't afford to have the site compromised…"

And blah, blah, blah.

Kamo Jr. turned around in the water, and Archie let his body bend with the Sharpedo's movements, the curving motion not disturbing Archie's balance in the least. _Who cares if they come back day after day? We'll just chase 'em off again._ But none of the higher-ups at Silph Co. seemed to see it that way, and though they hadn't said anything about it directly, Archie feared that one day they might ask him to take more violent measures. The thought of killing some poor Chinchou that had accidently blundered into the area left such a sour taste in his mouth that he was unable to enjoy it when Kamo Jr. surfed over an especially large wave. He'd tried to explain his methods to his bosses, but they weren't interested in hearing what he had to say. _This must be how Maxie feels anytime he tries to talk to his co-workers…_

The sour taste turned bitter the second he thought about the bespectacled redhead, and he mindlessly tightened his grip on Kamo Jr.'s dorsal fin, the tiny denticles digging into his skin.

He loosened his grip before he drew blood, grimace on his face. Max was once again giving him the cold shoulder, doing his level best to ignore Archie. This was especially confusing, considering Max had left him his phone number before he had left his apartment last week. But his texts went ignored and his calls went straight to voicemail, leaving Archie to wonder why he'd given him his number at all.

In the halls, Max deliberately avoided making eye contact, speeding past him on the rare occasions they passed each other by. But Archie had caught him giving him a lingering glance when he thought he hadn't been looking. Max had walked away before Archie could confront him about it, leaving him confused and hurt.

The confusion and hurt had quickly become an anger that had been simmering over the past few days or so. He didn't know what Max's deal was-was he busy with work? Was he in the closet? Or did he really just see Archie as a toy he could pick up and put down whenever he wanted? Regardless of the reason, Max's whole pull-and-push thing was bullshit, and Archie was going to tell him so the minute he managed to get him alone. He might end up losing the chance to be Max's friend, but his ambiguous behavior was driving Archie nuts. Perhaps he'd be better off without him.

The shadow of something overhead passed over them, and Archie peered upward, expecting to see a Wingull or a Pelipper above him. The creature was too small to be a Pelipper and too big to be a Wingull, but before Archie could properly identify it, it dove down, extremely fast, and landed on Archie, it's sharp claws pinching his shoulders. The suddenness of the action threw him off balance, and he fell right off Kamo Jr. and into the ocean. Kamo Jr sped off in the direction they'd been surfing in, either because he hadn't noticed Archie's fall, or because it amused him to do so. It was fine- he always came back eventually.

Archie's attacker chirped above him, shaking off droplets of ocean water that had splashed onto it. Archie glanced up at the Pokémon, puzzled. The purple, bat-like creature hovered above him, flapping its two pairs of wings, the membrane between the wings thin and green. It certainly looked like a Crobat, with its pointed ears, stubby feet, and snub nose, but… _Why is it so small?_ Crobats were typically pretty big, many of them topping out at two meters tall, with wingspans even longer than that. This little guy, however, couldn't have been more than half that size.

The Crobat's size certainly hadn't made it shy. It flew down to Archie, just above the waves, looking at him with interest in its golden eyes. Archie reached his hand out of the water and the Crobat flew closer, giving him a sniff before nuzzling his hand with its face. "You lost, buddy?" Archie asked as he scratched the bat's ears. The Golbats that he had encountered in caves hadn't been afraid of water, but it was strange to see one out on the beach like this. He glanced over at the shore as the Crobat squeaked, not spotting any trainers around. There was a large lump of…something, sitting over by the boardwalk, but Archie couldn't tell what it was; only knowing that it wasn't this Crobat's trainer.

Kamo Jr. swam back over to them, moving as slowly as it was possible for a Sharpedo to move. _Must be at his limit,_ Archie thought as the Crobat flew off towards the shark, eager to make another friend. The Crobat, clearly ignorant of the dangers of approaching random Sharpedos, drew closer to Kamo Jr., chirping curiously. Kamo Jr. eyed the little bat, waiting for the right moment, and then spat out a stream of water right at the Crobat. The Crobat danced out of the way of the attack, flying skillfully out of range. It flew behind the shark, and then dodged another spray as it flew back to Archie, squawking cheerfully all the while.

"Easy, Junior," Archie laughed when the Crobat flew back around and attempted to land on the Sharpedo's head. Kamo Jr. rewarded the Crobat's efforts by snapping his jaws at it. Archie wasn't worried, as Kamo Jr. seemed to lack the inherent viciousness of most of his kind, and was more interested in playing pranks than doing any lasting damage. Still, the shark had been surfing for a good thirty minutes, and Archie could tell that he was ready for a break. He pulled Kamo Jr.'s Diveball off of his waterproof belt and recalled him back into the ball, and then made his way back to the shore, the Crobat flying alongside him.

Normally, Archie would do some surfing on his own after Kamo Jr. tired himself out. The waves had pushed him far from where he had left his surfboard sticking up in the sand, so he started toward the board once he had waded out of the water. He stopped, however, when he looked over at the boardwalk, getting a better look at the thing huddled by it.

It was huge, that much Archie could tell, even with its legs tucked under it. Two strange gray humps stuck out its back, the color and roughness contrasting with the Pokémon's fluffy orange fur. On its body were three bright blue rings, oval in shape. Archie had seen one of these before, had actually fought one a long time ago at the Lavaridge Gym. That Camerupt- he was pretty sure that was what they were- had nearly cleaned his Sealeo's clock during the gym battle, despite looking duller than dirt. He approached the Camerupt, wondering what it was doing there. _First the Crobat, and now the Camerupt. Did someone just leave these guys here?_

The Camerupt was asleep, its large head hanging downward as it snored softly. Its ears twitched as it slept, as though swatting away some invisible pest. It was oddly cute, the hefty body and bright fur appearing incredibly cuddly, and while Archie wasn't a big fan of fire Pokémon, he could certainly understand why these guys and their pre-evolutions were so popular in the colder, more mountainous regions of Hoenn.

The Crobat flew over him, heading straight for the sleeping Pokémon and landing just on its shoulders. The Crobat's sudden presence woke the Camerupt, its head rising slowly as the bat buried its face in the tuft of fur between the Camerupt's ears, nuzzling affectionately. The Camerupt shook its head, knocking the Crobat back and was that annoyance in its eyes? Archie hadn't thought that Camerupts could be smart enough to be annoyed about anything.

The Crobat, unperturbed by the Camerupts rebuffs, chattered happily as it climbed onto one of the rocky humps, its feet perched on the edge. That had seemed sort of dangerous, and Archie still wasn't entirely sure if these Pokémon knew each other, so he walked over to them, hoping the Crobat would fly back over to him before it got itself hurt.

The sound of Archie's sandy footsteps alerted the Camerupt to his approach, and it suddenly switched its attention from the Crobat to the human walking over. It stared at him blankly for a second, and then started growling, its nostrils flaring, no longer looking cuddly at all. Archie only now realized that there was a chance that this Camerupt didn't have a trainer, and had somehow wound up here on its own. He put his hands up defensively, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. "It's okay," he said calmly, "I'm not gonna hurt ya."

The Camerupt was not convinced. It stood up, still growling in that menacing manner. The Crobat had finally noticed the Camerupt's threatening behavior and flew in front of its face, squeaking frantically, like it was trying to reason with it. But the Camerupt just nudged it out of the way, dragging its hoof in the sand, the universal signal for 'I'm about to charge on a fucker'. Archie grabbed Kamo Jr.'s Diveball off his belt, though he hoped it wouldn't come down to a battle. He wondered if he could outrun the Camerupt. It certainly looked like a slow, lumbering creature, but one could never tell with Pokémon, and Archie would have preferred not having 220 kilograms of pure rage ramming him in the ass if he turned out to be wrong about its speed. _Maybe if I run to the water, it won't follow me…_

Luckily for him, he didn't have to test his plan, as somebody on the boardwalk had shouted and caught both the Camerupt's and the Crobat's attention. The person's voice was instantly familiar to Archie ears, and he watched as Max jumped down from the boardwalk and onto the sand below, rushing over to his now much calmer (but still visibly ornery) Camerupt. The Crobat hovered above him, its wings flapping rapidly as it shrieked. Archie shook his head, reflecting on what a weird morning it had been already. _The sun ain't even up yet,_ he thought as Max murmured words he couldn't hear.

He supposed he should've been surprised to see that these were Max's Pokémon- and they definitely were, as Max had returned the Camerupt to its Pokéball with a sigh. But somehow the fact that Max's Camerupt was as easily irritated as the man himself made perfect sense to him. As for the Crobat… _Well, if anything was going to befriend this guy, it would be that Crobat._

Max turned around, his head bowed, looking apologetic. "I apologize for my Pokémon's behavior. She's…oh!" He jumped upon realizing that he was talking to Archie, and Archie felt a small satisfaction at catching him off guard. "It's you," he said, recovering quickly.

Archie's satisfaction drained away at the bland reaction, anger taking its place. "Yeah," he replied, voice tight with the resentment he'd been bottling up over the past few days. "It's me."

Max swallowed, adjusting his glasses as he tried to find the best way to deal with the man he'd been giving the silent treatment to over the past few days. "As I was saying," he said, his eyes on Archie's glowering face, "I apologize for my Camerupt's behavior." He looked away, and there was such sadness in his eyes that Archie felt his anger ebb away, just a tiny bit. "She's…not very good with people," he confessed, eyes still on the sand. "She likes to sleep on sand, and since it was so early, I didn't think anyone would run into her."

'Not very good with people' was putting the Camerupt's antisocial tendencies mildly, but that was not the issue. "I'm not mad about that," he said, crossing his arms over his chest. "And you know it."

Max's head snapped up at Archie's tone, any sadness in his expression replaced by his usual iciness. "I dislike it when someone tries to tell me what I'm thinking," he said, having the gall to sound annoyed by Archie's perfectly reasonable frustration. "So just say whatever it is you want to say and get it over with."

The Crobat had chosen that moment to fly over to Archie and wrap its wings around his shoulders in the bat equivalent of a hug. Whether it was intentionally trying to diffuse the situation or just being its normal friendly self, Archie didn't know, but it was hard to keep the glare on his face with the Crobat's purple fur tickling his shoulder.

To his credit, Max didn't try to use his Crobat to distract Archie from his anger. "Pinch!" he yelled, exasperated. "Get off of him!" He ran over, easily detaching the sweet-natured bat from Archie's bare torso. "We talked about this," he chided, holding the little Crobat at an eye level. The Crobat responded to this chastisement by attempting to hug its master. Max sighed again, though there wasn't much anger behind it, and he let the Crobat snuggle against him for a minute before returning it to its ball.

There was a short silence, before Archie laughed. "Pinch?" he said, raising an eyebrow.

Max's face turned red. "I didn't give him that ridiculous name," he grumbled defensively.

"Why is he so small?"

"I don't know. He was a runt as a Zubat, and I guess that it just stuck with him as he evolved."

"Oh. Well, I like the name. It suits him."

Max made a noncommittal sound at that, finally noticing that Archie was clad in only a pair of blue swim trunks. His eyes lingered on Archie's wet chest, eyes fixated on the muscles of his abdomen.

Well, if he was going to be like that, Archie figured he may as well look his fill too. From the way he was dressed, Archie guessed that Max had been out for a morning jog. For some reason, he was wearing a hooded sweatshirt; the words 'Pewter University' emblazoned on it in big grey letters against the black fabric. Archie thought he was a little overdressed, as he had just come out of the ocean and wasn't feeling chilly at all (then again, Max did claim to be from Western Hoenn). He didn't focus on the sweater for very long. The running pants Max was wearing were black and tight, showing off his well-defined leg muscles. Damn. Max may have been acting like a tool lately, but he sure did have some nice fucking legs. Arceus knew that Archie couldn't resist a pair of strong, toned legs, even when he was pissed off at the person they were attached to.

They stood there like that, ogling each other like a pair of horny teenagers, until the idiocy of their actions caught up with them and they averted their eyes.

Max was the first to regain his composure. "Listen," he said, locking eyes with Archie. "I admit that my behavior towards you has been…contradictory and that may be why you're upset with me."

Archie scoffed. "It's one-hundred percent why I'm upset with you. What other reason would there be?"

Max looked like he was about to reply with something smart, so Archie cut him off. "I like you," he said, straight to the point. "I might be pissed at you right now, but I still think you're an interesting, attractive guy who's worth getting to know." He stopped there to take in Max's reaction. The other man was silent, standing stiffly, his mouth pressed into a stern line. But there was softness in his eyes, mixed with uncertainty that pushes Archie to continue. "And I think you like me too. But I can't stand these mixed signals you keep giving me." Max didn't verbally respond to this, but he did look away, and it made Archie feel a bit better to know that at least the other man felt guilty about the way he'd been treating him. But it wasn't enough, and Archie had no intention of sparing Max this conversation, not when there was a chance that he might not get an opportunity like this one.

"If you weren't interested in anything other than a one night stand from me, then you shouldn't have kissed me last week." He pauses, then "And you definitely shouldn't have given me your phone number if you were just gonna ignore my calls." He ran a hand through his wet hair, trying to hide just how hurt he'd been by the conflicting actions. "Still don't get why you did that."

Max looked back over at him, the tight line of his mouth turned downward in a frown. His eyes were narrowed, any softness that was once there long gone. "I'm sorry. I really shouldn't have acted so carelessly. But you're acting like I took advantage of you, when I'm pretty sure I never forced you to do anything you didn't already want to do. Unless you think otherwise?" He leveled a steady gaze at Archie, daring him to disagree.

Archie faltered, taken aback by the frustration in Max's voice. "I'm not trying to play the victim or anything, I just…" he trailed off, suddenly unsure of what he had hoped to gain from the conversation at this point.

Max didn't wait for Archie to sort his thoughts out. "What did you honestly expect? That we'd start dating?" The notion was suggested with such derision that Archie felt his previous anger returning, mingled with the sting of rejection.

"I thought we could at least be friends," he replied, disappointment in his tone. He took a step closer to Max without thinking. While he didn't tower over the man, he did outweigh him, and a lesser man would've been intimidated by that alone. But Max's expression didn't waver and he didn't move an inch. Archie reluctantly respected him for that. "I thought you'd at least…I don't know. You could've at least said hi to me at work. Or hell, just acknowledging my existence would've been nice." Max winced at this, briefly, but Archie had caught it all the same and was encouraged by it. "Would it really be so bad if we did go out?" he asked, because he wasn't able to stop himself. "I mean, it's not like I'm always gonna be working at Silph Co., if that's-"

"That's not it!" Max snapped. His eyes were narrowed, and he was grinding his teeth in frustration. "It's not work, it's you!" He jabbed a finger at Archie's chest, and Archie found himself wanting to take a step back instinctively. But he stood his ground, his anger bolstering his courage. "You're just too…" Max paused, searching for the right words, and Archie braced himself for what he knew was coming, what always came eventually.

"Too what?" he asked, grabbing the hand Max had jabbed at him with. "I'm too what?"

"You're too good!" The words were the last ones Archie expected to hear, and Max took the opportunity to pry himself out of Archie's grip. "Look at you," he snarled; rubbing the hand he'd snatched away from Archie as though he'd been injured. "You're ridiculously attractive, you're smart, you're fun to be around, you're charismatic, you love Pokémon, they love you, and even the fucking assholes I work with think you're amazing. Why the hell are you trying to pursue me?"

Well. People had been telling Archie that he was too much of many things throughout his twenty-three years of life-too smart, too dumb, too muscular, too thuggish, too crass, too loud, too aggressive, too passive, too Unovan, too Hoenni, and so on-but nobody had ever accused him of being 'too good'.

He couldn't have been more confused if Max's Crobat had popped out of his Pokéball and shot a Supersonic his way. "You don't like me," he said, when he was able to make some kind of sense of all this, "because you like me too much?"

Something within Max broke, and the other man threw his arms up, in either exasperation or surrender. "I know! It's weird! I'm weird! You don't need to tell me!" His face had gone red again, almost as red as his hair, and it appeared as though he was pleading with Archie to understand him, even as he threw more walls up around himself. "It's better if we just end things. I'll just bring you down." And with those parting words, he turned and ran off, the sand under his sneakers not slowing him down at all.

Archie let him go, mostly because he was too dumbfounded to move. He looked down at his sandy feet, like they had some sort of solution to this mess he was currently in. They didn't, and Archie trudged off down the beach, towards his surfboard. "Too good," he muttered, kicking up sand as he walked. What had Max meant when he said that he'd only bring Archie down? Did it have something to do with the tattoo on his arm? His overly-aggressive Camerupt?

He stopped and looked at the ocean, watching the waves crash against the shore. Just ending things with Max right now didn't sit right with him, and it wasn't just because he was still attracted to the man even after all he'd said and done. But if Max didn't want to take things any further, then that was that, and Archie had to accept it. Archie grabbed his surfboard and went back into the ocean, hoping to lose himself in the water.


	6. Chapter 4

I own nothing

As it turned out, that wasn't that.

Max had called him two days later, late at night, right after his diving class. If Archie had been a pettier man, he perhaps would've ignored the call as revenge for all the times Max had allowed his own calls to go straight to voicemail. Archie wasn't that kind of guy though, and he was curious, so he picked up, unsure of what to expect.

Not two hours later, Archie was rolling off of him, sweaty and sated, Max in the same state beside him. They were at Max's place this time, a moderately-sized apartment close to the office where they both worked. It was decorated sparsely, a stark contrast to the homey, somewhat cluttered appearance of Archie's home. Maps and diagrams were displayed on the walls instead of pictures of friends and family, and it was like Max had taken a piece of the lab home with him.

Archie slipped the condom off and leaned over his side of Max's bed, looking for the trashcan. There wasn't one, so he was left holding the used condom between his thumb and forefinger. "Uh…" He looked over at Max, who was still lying flat on his back, catching his breath, eyes closed. Archie nudged him with his elbow, and Max opened his eyes, and then, upon seeing the expression on Archie's face, laughed softly and took the condom, tossing it into the wastebasket on his side of the bed.

Max propped himself up on his elbows afterward, looking down at Archie almost affectionately. He seemed like he wanted to say something – what, Archie didn't know - but he stayed quiet. Instead he shifted closer to him, reaching out and tracing the outline of Archie's bearded jaw, his face contemplative. The apartment was eerily silent around them for a while until Max spoke, in a near whisper. "Thanks for coming tonight," he said, his voice devoid of its usual prickliness. "I honestly didn't think you'd pick up when I called."

Archie scratched his chin, laughing a little. "I knew you'd come around," he said, grinning. "Nobody can resist me for very long. I think it's the beard."

Max scoffed at this, but he was also smiling back at Archie even as he rolled his eyes. "I love your teeth," Archie blurted out, before he could think better of doing so.

The smile vanished and Max brought his hand up to cover his mouth. "My teeth are awful," he said, getting up out of the bed. The moment was gone, walking right out the door with Max following close behind.

"Maxie wait, I didn't-"

"I'm going to take a shower," he muttered before Archie could stammer out an apology. He stopped at the door and turned back towards him. "You can…" He paused, licking his lips. "You can…there should be something to drink in the fridge. I think. If you wanted to stay."

Archie smiled, relieved that he hadn't offended Max with his ill-thought compliment. "Sure, man," he said, settling back into the bed. "I'll just make myself at home."

Max nodded, the motion stiff, and then walked off to his bathroom across the hall. He clearly wasn't used to having guests in his apartment, if the uncertain way he was acting was any indication. _Must be easier to leave someone else's place than to kick someone out of yours._

Max wasn't kicking Archie out (at least not yet) so Archie let himself relax and think. His thoughts quickly turned grim, despite the fact that everything seemed to be going his way. He didn't fool himself into thinking that Max had suddenly found himself no longer able to resist his charms. At the same time, however, he couldn't believe that this was just some booty-call. When Max had called, his voice had had a catch in it, a shakiness that normally wasn't there, though anyone who hadn't spent as much time with the man as Archie had would not have been able to detect it. He'd been upset about something, and not in his usual pissed-off manner, but genuinely upset. Archie didn't think anything at work could get to him this much, so it must've been personal. His family then? Max hadn't actually said anything about it, and had in fact only tolerated maybe five minutes of basic small talk before pulling Archie into his bedroom.

He wondered if Max would pretend this night hadn't happened the next day, and then decided that he would deal with that when the time came. He got up out of the bed and put his boxers back on, suddenly realizing how dry his mouth felt. He walked out of the bedroom and into the darkened hall, towards the small kitchenette. _Max had said it was okay, right?_ He could still hear the shower running though the bathroom door as he headed to the fridge, noting how clean the kitchen was. The cleanliness may have been due more to disuse than any sort of diligence on Max's part, as there didn't seem to be any cookware lying about. He opened the fridge to find that there were only some water bottles, a carton of Kantoese takeout, and a half-full jug of Hondew berry juice in it. He wrinkled his nose at the juice and grabbed one of the water bottles.

He set the bottle on the counter and unscrewed the cap, glancing around the apartment. There was very little furniture around, though what was there looked to be very nice and well-made. A small table with two chairs was placed just outside the kitchenette, and over by the window was a two-seater couch, with a polished brown coffee table in front of it. The coffee table had an ashtray and sleek silver laptop on top of it. There was a bookcase across from the couch were normally a television set would be placed, the books neatly organized. It was all very clean, and Archie couldn't help but think that Max didn't spend a whole lot of time here.

His gaze shifted from the apartment to the counter before him. It was, naturally, spotless, with only a pile of mail on it. The mail, oddly enough, seemed to be the only disorganized thing in the entire room, as it looked like it had been tossed there carelessly instead of stacked neatly. It wasn't a lot of mail, and only one envelope had been opened. Archie took a gulp of water, his attention caught by the open envelope. 'Matsubusa Iwatani' was the name printed on the envelope, and the sent address claimed to be from somewhere in Lavaridge Town.

The contents of the envelope had been stuffed back into it, none too neatly. Archie glanced at the hallway, than back at the letter. He knew that he should really just leave it- Max probably wouldn't be too happy to find Archie invading his privacy- but the allure of finding out what was going on with the other man, and learning more about him, was too much to resist. He took the letter out, smoothing the paper out as best he could, and began reading it.

 _Dear Matsubusa,_

 _My word, you're a hard one to find! Fishing for Milotics would've required less time and effort than tracking you down; especially in the relatively short time frame I was given. But I felt that I owed it to Manami to do so, given that she was one of my favorite customers._

 _You were always such a smart boy, and that does not appeared to have changed, given how well you've hidden yourself behind extensive travel and a false name. No doubt you've noticed my use of the past tense in the previous paragraph, so I won't beat around the bush any longer. Your dear mother passed away on November 17th. The League authorities say that she died peacefully in her sleep, and I suppose that is true, in a way._

 _This letter should've reached you on the 25th at the latest. The funeral is scheduled a week hereafter, on December 2nd at 10:00 am. Arrangements have already been made for her to be buried, but since you are her son, you can contact the funeral home to have them changed, if you wish to do so. I'll enclose that information within. I do hope that you'll show up, as I would hate for all the effort I put in to finding you to go to waste._

 _I'm still running the Apothecary, so feel free to call if you need to._

 _Sorry for your loss._

 _Best regards,_

 _Hisato Yamaochi._

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?"

The question was snapped at him before he could even process the contents of the letter. Mouth hanging open in shock, Archie looked across the room to find Max frowning at him, towel around his waist and arms across his chest. "Allowing you to stay the night was not an invitation for you to go through my mail," he spat out, eyes narrowed.

Archie didn't bother defending himself. "Your mom died," he said, saddened. He'd known that something had to have been wrong for Max to have actually contacted him, but he hadn't thought that it would be something like this.

Max stomped over to the counter and swiped the letter from Archie's hand. He held the letter tightly, crumpling it further. "I'm well aware of that fact," he hissed. His mouth quivered for just a second, and then he balled the papers up and threw them across the room. "You should go."

Archie didn't move from his spot, unsure of what exactly to do, but knowing that he couldn't just leave Max, not like this. He went around the counter and over to Max, who was pointedly not looking at him. "I'm sorry," he said, reaching over to touch him.

"Don't…Don't be," Max sighed, moving away from Archie's outstretched hand before he could make contact. He looked far wearier without his glasses. "We weren't close."

"She was still your mother," Archie replied carefully. Max didn't respond to that, though his eyes did get colder. Perhaps that had been the wrong thing to say. "You gonna go to the funeral?"

"I haven't gone back to Lavaridge in fifteen years," he answered, running a hand through his damp hair. "I don't see the point in going back now."

"Well…what about…" Archie scratched his beard, thinking back to his owns mother's funeral. "What about closure? When my mom died I actually felt a lot better after the funeral. Like, I got the chance to say goodbye to her and all that."

"Your mother died?"

"Yeah, when I was seven." Archie had long ago accepted the deaths of his parents, but the mention of them in this context dredged up some unhappy memories. "I lost both of my parents in Typhoon Analyn."

"That's…I'm sorry about that. About your parents," Max said, looking away. He thought silently to himself for a moment. "Even if I did go back, just for the funeral, I still haven't seen anybody from Lavaridge in so long. I'm not certain I want to deal with all of that. But…" he bit his lip, talking more to himself than to Archie. "I don't know. I admit that part of me does want to go back. Why, I don't know." He stared straight ahead, his gaze on the kitchen wall across from him. "I hate this. It's so stupid. I should know what I want."

"Do you have any other family members?"

"No. And before you ask, I don't have any close friends either. Shocking, I know."

It admittedly wasn't shocking at all, but Archie didn't feel the need to continue that line of conversation. "If it's being held next week," he began tentatively, "then I could go with you. You know, for support."

There were many emotions in Max's face just then- disbelief, suspicion, vulnerability- but there was also a faint glimmer of hope underneath all of Max's instinctive mistrust. "Why the hell would you want to go to a stranger's funeral?" he muttered, intentionally phrasing the question in a way that would make Archie consider rescinding his offer.

It wasn't going to work. Archie knew that if Max hadn't wanted him to come with, he would've just said so. "It sucks going to a funeral, especially one for a parent. And being there by yourself would suck even more. I feel bad for you, Maxie."

"I don't want your pity."

"I'm not pitying you, man. I'm just speaking as someone who's been through this." Archie shrugged. "I know our relationship is kinda strange, but I'd like to think we're at least friends.' Max had gone quiet again, but he didn't object to the assessment. "If you really don't want me to go, fine, I won't push it. But I really don't mind helping you out. So, uh, just let me know ahead of time so I can take that day off…"he trailed off, waiting for Max's response.  
Max stared at him, searching his face as though looking for the 'gotcha' hidden within Archie's generous offer. "You really are too good," he mumbled when he gave in. "Do you even have a suit?

* * *

Archie did have a suit, but it was dark blue, and more appropriate for business than for a funeral. On Wednesday after work, he went to the Lilycove Department Store, accompanied by Matt and Izumi. Archie hadn't known why they had wanted to tagalong at first-neither of them enjoyed shopping, and all three of them looked out of place in the swanky suit section of the store.

He didn't stay clueless for long. "So Archie," Matt said, shrugging on an ugly yellow suit jacket. It was way too small for his bulky frame, and it looked like the seams were barely holding the jacket together. One of the sales clerks fretted over by the register at the sight. "What're you getting this suit for again?"

"I already told you, I'm going to a funeral," Archie replied, searching through the available jackets. Most of the black jackets were too short, and the ones that were the right length looked to narrow to fit around his broad shoulders.

"With that Max guy," Izumi added, leaning one of the display racks. She outwardly appeared disinterested, but her green eyes were narrowed, and her tone had been full of disapproval.

"Yes," Archie gritted out, irritated by both his friend's nosiness and the growing likelihood that he would have to get something from the big and tall section. _And that always costs more than the regular sizes._

"Odd location for a date."

"It's not a date, Izumi. He just needs someone to help him get through this, that's all." He sighed and gave up on the hopeless endeavor, abandoning the rack and walking over to the big and tall section. He hated shopping. "What's your problem, anyway? Is this about Ushio?"

"Yeah, right," Izumi said, rolling her eyes. "You act like a weirdo for two weeks straight and don't tell us why, but I'm only having a problem because you didn't want to date my brother."

Archie bristled at her sarcasm. "How've I been acting like a weirdo?"

"Are you kidding?" Izumi asked, standing up straight. "You've been acting like a fucking mope everyday lately, you keep checking your phone, you don't talk to anyone at Jabillo's and whenever anyone asked what was wrong you got all upset. And now, all of a sudden, you're going to a funeral with the one guy that even the other eggheads think is a stuck-up prick." She brushed her thick, orange curls off of her shoulder. "Its. Weird."

It did seem weird, when put that way and Archie knew that whatever he had going on with Max wasn't exactly normal. But it wasn't like Izumi had any right to judge him. "Is that what you think too, Matt?"

The jacket Matt had tried on had managed to stay in one piece, but the tightness of it had partially immobilized Matt's upper body, and he stood there with his thick, muscular arms bent at the elbows. "Uh," he said, moving cautiously, and Archie hoped that this store didn't have a 'you-break-it-you-buy-it' policy. "Izumi's just worried about you, bro. So am I." He lifted his arm up, stopping as a stitch pulled apart. The sales clerk had called the manager over and both of them were staring at Matt with matching expressions of horror.

"There's nothing to be worried about," Archie grumbled, sliding a jacket across the rack. "You guys haven't even met him and you're acting like he's gonna drag me into a life of crime or something."

"I've heard stories about him," Matt said, the statement eliciting groans from both Izumi and Archie.

"You hear stories 'bout everyone and everything," Archie muttered, pulling a jacket off the hanger.

"They say," Matt said, disregarding his companion's disdain, "that he used to run with that big Kantoese gang." He pulled back his arm, attempting to free himself from the restrictive jacket without damaging it further. "Malit says that his arms are covered in tattoos."

So are mine," Archie replied, putting on the jacket. "And yours too. Doesn't make us gangsters." The jacket fit nicely, so Archie took it off, relieved that at least this part was done.

"But his are like, gang tattoos."

"Matt, if somebody told you that Kyogre was gonna rise out of the sea next Saturday, you'd be building a boat to weather the storm." Archie folded the jacket under his arm and made his way to the pants section.

The manager of the department had walked over to Matt and was attempting to help the bigger man out of the jacket. "Ask Izumi. She's heard the same story I have."

"Heard it and don't believe it," Izumi said immediately as she followed Archie. "But I have seen the guy, and there was definitely something snobby about him. Something about his…" She gestured at her face. "He's got this conceited look about him. Like he thinks he's better than everyone around him."

Archie could see how Izumi would get that impression, and to some extent Max did think he was better than his co-workers. But he had never acted that way towards Archie. If anything, he seemed to think that Archie was 'too good' for him, whatever that meant. "He's not that bad. He's just…complicated."

Izumi shrugged. "Whatever. You know him better than any of us, I guess. It's just weird. He doesn't seem like your type."

Archie kept his focus on the row of slacks he was browsing. "He doesn't need to be my type," he insisted, hoping Izumi would just drop the subject already. "We're not dating."

The wordless grunt Izumi made in response to that implied that she did not believe him, but she didn't pursue it any further, opting to instead watch Matt as he spoke with the manager. The jacket had been ruined by Matt's muscles, and he was offering to pay for it, but the manager seemed to be taking the offer as a threat, likely due to Matt's intimidating size. He insisted that it was fine, that Matt should go back over to his friend and help him pick something out so that the three of them could leave his section before they destroyed something else. Naturally, the manager hadn't said that part out loud, but it was pretty obvious by the way he was shooing Matt away.

Archie pulled out a pair of slacks that were long enough to fit his legs, thinking about the last thing Izumi had said to him. There was little doubt that Archie knew more about Max than anybody else at work, but did that mean that he knew him? He couldn't help but think that he didn't, as he hadn't even known what his real name was until relatively recently.

 _Plenty of people change their names for one reason or another_ , he rationalized. And really, how long had it been since he met Max? Two weeks at most? And even then, most of that time hadn't been spent talking. It would be silly to think that he could know everything there was to know about the man in such a short period of time. With that in mind, he took the slacks over to the fitting room, hoping that he wouldn't have to be in this store much longer.

* * *

The next five days passed without a whole lot of word from Max. Occasionally, he would shoot Archie a text regarding the upcoming funeral, short texts such as 'Our train ride is scheduled for 4:30 am, I've already bought your ticket,' and 'Make sure you take at least two days off from work, we might have to stay overnight.' Whenever Archie texted him to ask how he was doing, he'd usually respond with a terse 'fine' or 'I don't want to talk right now'. The answers worried Archie, and he desperately wanted to make sure that Max was alright, but he kept his distance. Max wanted space and Archie would respect that.

The morning of the funeral found Archie rousing himself at 3:00 am in order to be ready to go. He was no stranger to early mornings, though he certainly wasn't used to putting on a suit at this hour, and was able to meet Max at the train station fifteen minutes before departure.

Archie couldn't tell if Max wasn't used to waking up this early, or if he just hadn't slept at all. His already pale skin appeared sheet white, and there were bags under his eyes, visible even behind his glasses. His suit looked good on him though, Archie had to admit, the cut of his slacks emphasizing the shape of his legs nicely. Saying something like that out loud seemed a little inappropriate given the situation they were in, so he kept that thought to himself and greeted Max with a simple "hey, how're you doing?"

Not well, if his response was anything to go by. "This is your last chance," he said quickly, a hint of anxiety in his tone. "If you wanted to leave right now, I wouldn't hold it against you."

Archie thought that it was Max who looked like he wanted to bolt. "I already paid for the suit," he joked, hoping to ease Max's nervousness.

It had the opposite effect. "I can compensate you for that. How much-"

"I was kidding, Max," Archie interrupted, grabbing the tense man by the shoulders. "I'm not going anywhere. Okay? Okay." He felt Max relax under his hands, and he gently directed the other man towards the train. "Let's just get on the train and sit down, alright?" Max nodded numbly, than picked up his overnight bag and boarded the train, Archie following after him.

They were seated in one of the private compartments up in the first class car. The compartment was a nicely furnished little room, with slide out tables and well-cushioned seats, but Archie had a feeling that Max had taken the extra expense more to ensure his privacy than out of any desire for comfort.

As he was stuffing his bag into the overhead bin, he noticed Max scrutinizing his face, his eyes focused on his jaw. "Something wrong?" he asked as he sat in the seat across from him.

Max bit his lip, and it seemed like he wasn't going to answer. But then he muttered "your beard…"

Archie put a hand on his chin, rubbing his shorn beard uneasily. He'd trimmed it this morning, as its usual scruffy state would've appeared strange in contrast to his otherwise formal appearance. "Should I have shaved it all off?"

"No!" Max yelled instantly. Then he blushed, embarrassed by his outburst.

 _Oh._ Archie grinned. Don't worry; it'll be back to its full glory in like, three days at the latest." Max didn't' dignify Archie's teasing with a response, though the blush was still high on his cheeks as he stared out the window. Archie sat back into his seat, the grin disappearing as the train made its departure.

The ride from Lilycove to Lavaridge would take about four hours. Archie wasn't particularly fond of trains- the space was too cramped, and he didn't have enough excuses to get up and move around. He fidgeted in his seat, unused to sitting on his ass for long periods of time. Max didn't appear to be faring much better. He looked like he was focused on the bright, tropical scenery outside, but he was tapping his fingers on his knee and there was a far-away look in his eye. He was jittery, and Archie didn't know if that was because he was nervous, if it was because he wasn't allowed to smoke on the train, or some combination of the two.

After about forty minutes of fidgety, conversationless travel, Archie got up. "I think the breakfast car's open," he said, heading towards the compartment exit. "You want anything?"

"Coffee, please," Max said absently, not taking his eyes off the window.

"That's it?"

"Yeah."

"You're not hungry?"

"Archie, please." Max took his glasses off and rubbed his temple. "I'm not a breakfast person."  
"Alright, fine. Whatever you say."  
He came back a few minutes later, carrying a tray with two plates and two cups on it. Max had been considerate enough to pull out the collapsible table-top on Archie's side of the compartment, so he set tray on it and sat down. The larger of the two plates contained an eggplant omelet with some sliced tomatoes and cucumbers on the side. The smaller plate had a few pandesal rolls on it. Archie pushed that plate and the coffee over to Max, hoping he'd change his mind about not eating breakfast.

Max took a sip of the coffee. "How did you know how I liked my coffee?"

"You seem like the kind of guy who would drink it black," Archie replied, cutting into the omelet.

Max shrugged, and turned his gaze back onto the scenery outside. For about two minutes, there was only the sound of Archie's knife and fork scraping against the plate within the compartment. Archie glanced up at Max as he ate, watching as the other man occasionally took sips of his coffee. He was sitting up straight, his posture stiff despite the comfortable booth he was seated in. He was looking out the window, but he seemed too lost in his thoughts to be taking in the beautiful rainforest they were passing by. Archie swallowed a mouthful of omelet and asked if he was okay.

Max took one of the pandesal rolls off the plate. "I'm fine," he said before taking a bite of the roll.

That was one way to get him to eat something, Archie supposed. "You just look nervous, that's all."

Max downed the rest of his coffee and swallowed the food in his mouth. "What's there to be nervous about?" he snapped, clutching the remains of the roll in his fist. He sighed and dropped the squished roll back onto the plate. "Sorry," he apologized, wiping his hand with a napkin. "I never thought I'd ever go back to Lavaridge Town." He sullenly tossed the napkin onto the tray. "I can't imagine that anyone there would be happy to see me. I didn't exactly leave on the best of terms."

The rumor that Matt had told him about Max being part of some gang flashed through his mind. _Don't be stupid. He was just a kid when he left. And those stories are just bilge away._ He decided that he could satiate his curiosity about Max's past some other time. "Think of it this way," he said lightly, spearing a slice of tomato with his fork. "You might have left on bad terms, but you're coming back first class." He gestured to the fancy compartment around them. "You've got a good job, an expensive suit, and a super handsome, awesome dude on your arm. Who could judge you for that?"

"You'd be surprised," Max mumbled, turning back to the window. But he had half a smile on his face, and was relaxing into his seat. Archie considered that something of a win.


	7. Chapter 5

I own nothing

The denizens of Lavaridge Town were a stiff lot.

Perhaps that was an unfair assessment. This was, after all, a funeral, hardly the sort of occasion where one could let loose. But these people seemed so stern and stoic to Archie, and while his mother's funeral hadn't been a party, there had at least been a warm atmosphere between the guests to offset the somber reason they had come together.

There was a chance that this perceived coldness was merely due to cultural differences. Historically, Western Hoenn had spent a good deal of time under the control of Kantoese forces, while the expansive jungles and rough seas had protected the coastal cities and islands of Eastern Hoenn from the invading army. Hoenn may have regained its independence hundreds of years ago, but Kanto had left a permanent mark on Western Hoenn.

Lavaridge was one of the locations most heavily influenced by Kantoese culture. Archie had gone through this town only once before, many years ago, to obtain the Heat badge. The people he'd met there had been courteous enough, but they weren't very emotive, and the flat way they had spoken to him had been a bit unnerving to his more outgoing self. Max's accent was similarly inflectionless, unless he was angry about something. Archie had stayed long enough to get his badge, moved on, and had no interest in returning to the small, landlocked mountain town until now.

Still, he was relieved to find that these people were still Hoenni at heart. Max's mother had been buried instead of cremated in the traditional Kantoese style. Archie couldn't understand the point of cremation- how were you supposed to give back to the earth that you'd lived on if you were a pile of ashes? And wouldn't burning a body be dangerous? What if the fire got out of control? Not to mention the potential smell…

Archie was grateful that he didn't have to find out the answer to those questions on top of the discomfort he was already feeling. The entire funeral had been an uncomfortable experience from the moment he and Max had walked into the funeral home. Nobody had rushed forward to offer Max their condolences, despite the fact that it was his mother who was wrapped in a shroud in the other room. Archie had actually thought they had walked into the wrong funeral at first, but apparently they were on the guest list for this one.

The wake had been a bit strange. Max's mother was wrapped head to toe in the traditional burial shroud, laid out on a platform that was covered in bright, fragrant flowers. It was eerie- here he was, paying his respects to a woman he'd never even met, her son the only clue he had as to what she could've looked like while alive. He wondered if he had inherited his red hair from her, if her eyes were the same sharp black, if her skin was as pale as her son's. He wanted to ask Max, but the other man had glared at the body so intensely that he thought it would be best to stay silent, lest Max have an outburst in front of these already suspicious strangers.

The actual burial was more somber than eerie, at least to Archie. The platform had been hitched to two Camerupts (Archie had been reasonably sure that one of them had been the one he'd fought all those years ago) and carried out of the funeral home towards the graveyard. The walk to the burial site had taken fifteen minutes. Lavaridge was a charming little mountain town, but Archie was too focused on Max to take in any of the pleasant scenery. Though he rightfully should've been at the front of the procession, Max had opted to stay in the middle, as though he wanted to blend into the crowd. He appeared to have achieved that, as nobody around him spared him a second glance as he walked mechanically through the town, his gaze on the ground.

Max's mother was laid to rest shortly after their arrival at the graveyard, and Archie felt tears prick at the corner of his eyes. There were two ways that Hoenni's laid their dead to rest- either burial in the ground or burial at sea. Archie's mother had been given back to the ocean she'd loved so much, so that, as legend stated, Kyogre could accept her soul in the afterlife. Max's mother was being buried in the ground, as most people in the mainland cities revered Groudon, Lord of the land. Archie wasn't a very spiritual person, but couldn't help but be reminded of how sad, yet relieved he'd been at his mother's funeral. The memory alone was causing him to tear up, even though it had happened over fifteen years ago.

Max, on the other hand, seemed to be completely unaffected. He'd been jittery from the moment the Priest had begun speaking, and halfway through the ceremony he'd leaned towards Archie and asked if he thought it would be rude to light up a cigarette.

Archie had balked at the insensitive question. "You're seriously gonna smoke at your mother's funeral? Really?"  
Max had rolled his eyes as he turned to face Archie. His expression went from annoyed to quizzical upon noticing Archie's teary eyes. "What's wrong with you?" he'd asked.

"What's wrong with _you_?"

Max hadn't responded to that, but to his credit, he didn't light up a cigarette until the after party. Archie had stayed close to him in spite of his sullen silence. This was mostly because he didn't know anybody here. The only person he recognized was the Lavaridge gym leader, dressed in black and carrying her newborn baby in a sling. Both the baby and the gym leader had red hair that was similar in color to Max's, and he wondered if they were related. Max had given him a wordless half-shrug when he asked him about it.

The other guests, for their part, gave them both a wide berth. Archie could understand why they wouldn't want to approach the grouchy Max, but…it seemed like most of these people didn't even know who he was. The ones who approached did so tentatively, and they searched his face in a puzzled manner, as though trying to place him in their memories of the deceased woman. They would mumble their condolences and scurry off when Max's withering glare became too much for them.

Archie glanced around the crowded funeral home. The priest's eulogy had gone on about how charitable and hard-working Max's mother had been, how devoted she had been to the Pokémon center she had volunteered at, and how much the community would mourn her untimely death. The eulogy had added another layer to the mystery of Max's relationship with his mother. If his mother had been such a kind, generous person, why had Max left and never come back? And why was he so angry now?

Archie doubted that Max was in the mood to shed any light on the situation. He looked over at the buffet table, realizing that he hadn't eaten since the omelet on the train. "Hey," he said, nudging Max. "I'm gonna get something to eat." He pointed to the buffet table across the room. "You gonna be okay?"

"I'm not a child," Max huffed, putting his cigarette out and tossing the remains into a potted plant. "Sorry," he said, a bit more subdued. "It's just…this is harder than I expected. Being back here, that is." He mustered up a small smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Go ahead. I can handle myself."

Archie nodded and then made his way over to the buffet. It was piled with food, provided by the many guests, though a few of the containers were empty at this point. Archie grabbed a plate and was about to dig into some pomeg berry salad when somebody tapped him on the shoulder.

Thinking it was Max, Archie dropped the tongs and turned around. "You want something, Maxie?" But there was a different redhead ( or rather, redheads) standing behind him, and it caught him off guard for a moment. "Oh. Hi."

"Hello," she said, smiling. Her baby slept peacefully against her chest, blissfully unaware of her surroundings. "I remember you. Archie, right?"

"Uh, yeah. I can't believe you still remember me. It's been what, eight years?"

The gym leader (her name was Akane, he recalled suddenly) laughed, throwing her back her long red hair (which, Archie could now see, was a shade paler than Max's). "How could I forget the guy who trained his Poliwhirl to juggle oran berries?" Archie laughed with her, running his free hand through his hair. The baby stirred against Akane's chest, her nap disturbed by her mother's laughter.

"Congrats on the baby," Archie said politely as she calmed the squirming infant by lightly rocking her. "What's her name?"

"Asuna. Her grandpa predicts she'll be running the gym before she's five." She gave the baby a fond smile before looking back at Archie. "Didn't expect to see you here, of all places."

"I'm here with Max, actually."

Akane cocked her head to the side, brows furrowed in confusion. "Who's Max?"

 _Oh. Right_. Archie had forgotten that Max had changed his name after leaving his hometown. That's uh, Manami's son," he said sheepishly, embarrassed that he had messed up on that small detail.

The gym leader was still confused. "I thought his name was Matsubusa?"

"I call him Max. It's a nickname." Archie turned to peek at the man in question still leaning and glowering by the window.

"He doesn't look like the type of guy who would have a nickname," she said skeptically. "No offense."

"Us Easterners give everybody nicknames," Archie replied. Max was now looking at them curiously, but he didn't seem like he was about to come over anytime soon.

Akane accepted the explanation instantly, likely ruminating on the strangeness of Easterners. "He, uh…" she began awkwardly, fiddling with the strap of her sling. "Is he okay? He seems kind of…angry."

"Well, it's been rough for him, I'll say that," Archie said quickly. He picked up the tongs again and began piling his plate with food, trying to buy himself some time to think of a reasonable excuse for Max's behavior.

"He's been glaring at everybody since he got here."

"That's just how his face looks all the time," Archie replied, for lack of anything better coming to mind. "He's just processing this whole thing. He never did get the chance to say goodbye to his mother." Archie mentally admitted that he didn't think that Max would've wanted to say goodbye to her, given his behavior at the moment.

Akane seemed to believe this lie. "You know him better than anyone else here does, I suppose." She frowned. "To be honest, I don't even remember that much about him, though I think he's only a couple years younger than I am." She thought for a moment, and then said "I'm going to go give him my condolences. It was nice seeing you again, Archie."

"Yeah, thanks, nice seeing you too." He gave her one last smile before turning back towards the buffet, hoping that Max would at least be civil towards her.

He came back to Max's spot by the window two minutes later, carrying a paper and two cups of water. "You wanna sit down, maybe?" he asked, nodding his head towards the tables set up in the middle of the room. "You've been standing there for a while."

Max shrugged, than led Archie to one of the empty tables close by, careful to avoid any of the other guests. He was ramrod stiff, his fingers tapping on the table as Archie set his food down. Archie pushed one of the cups of water towards him and put the plate between them both. "Eat something," he said as he picked up his spoon and scooped up some potato salad.

"I'm not hungry."

"You haven't eaten since breakfast. And that was just some coffee and half a roll." He pushed the plate closer to Max as he chewed his food.

Max pushed it right back. "Stop it."

Archie swallowed and pushed the plate toward him again. "You can't survive on just cigarettes and coffee," he admonished. "Eat an eggroll, at least."

"What are you, my mother?" His eyes widened, and he brought a hand to his mouth. Archie dropped his spoon in shock, wincing automatically at Max's words. "Fuck," Max said softly. "I can't believe I just fucking said that." He put his head on the table and started laughing, almost hysterically. Archie watched him for a moment before putting his hand on Max's back.

"You okay, Maxie?" he asked, rubbing circles into his back as the man giggled to himself. Passing guests turned to look at the strange display, but Archie ignored them, his concern for Max outweighing any judgment they might receive from strangers.

I'm fine," Max said, sitting back up. He lifted his glasses up and wiped his eyes. "Really, I'm fine. I just can't believe I actually said that." He sat back and looked up at the ceiling, still laughing in disbelief at himself. "I think I'm losing it."

"Nah," Archie said, picking his spoon back up. "You're probably processing…all this. You'll be fine."

"Hmm." Max picked up the eggroll and nibbled on it, which Archie considered to be progress. They ate in silence for a few minutes. Max's gaze drifted across the room, taking in the guests that had known his mother better than he likely had. His eyes landed on a violet-haired man sitting at a table across the room. Archie examined the stranger, noting that he appeared to be around the same age as Max and himself.

Max stared at the violet-haired stranger for a good while, a contemplative expression on his face. Archie poked him playfully. "Is that your old boyfriend?"

"No." Max turned back to Archie, the ghost of a smile on his face. "I stole his sneakers while he was in the hot springs with his friends."

"You what?" Archie stared at him in disbelief. "Why…How'd you do that?"

"I just followed them in and took them." He was smiling now, and Archie had to laugh at how proud of his act of thievery he looked. "They were those Blazikicks that were so popular years ago."

"I remember those!" Archie cackled, the image of pale, redheaded Maxie stomping around in a pair of bright orange sneakers in his mind. "I wanted a pair so bad, but my Granny always said they were too expensive."

"They were absolute shit," Max said, taking a sip of his water. "They fell apart shortly after I stole them. Didn't even get me through Mauville City."

"Serves you right!" Archie exclaimed, his voice dripping with false outrage. He'd been a little louder than he intended, and he looked around to see if anyone was staring at them funny. An old man with an incredibly shiny head was coming toward them, but his wizened face was placid and friendly. Archie figured they were fine. "Is that why you left town? So you wouldn't get caught with stolen Blazikicks?"

Max snorted. "Hardly. Nobody here even noticed I was alive long enough to look at my shoes."

Archie's face fell slightly at the words, the small insight into Max's childhood dampening the lightness of their current conversation. "Was it really that bad?"

Max gestured at the crowded room. "Most of the people here don't even know I'm Manami's son." He glanced over at Archie and, upon seeing his saddened expression, stopped smiling. "It's not like it's a big deal to me," he quickly assured. "I mean, I never lost any sleep over it." He turned the eggroll in his hand idly, before tossing it back onto the plate. "Don't get upset for me, okay? I'm the one who left and didn't come back for fifteen years."

Archie nodded, though he didn't feel any less bad for Max. "I accidentally called you Max in front of the gym leader and she got so confused," he said, hoping to return the tone of their conversation back to its previous lightness.

"That's been happening all day," Max chuckled, picking up his cup of water. "I've been trying to ignore it, but it's still strange to be called by that name."

"I imagine it must be," said an unfamiliar voice. Max froze at the words, his whole body tensing. The old man that Archie had previously seen shuffled over to their table and was now pulling out the chair next to Max. "You must've changed your name the second you left Lavaridge," he said as he maneuvered his elderly body into the seat. "I never found any record of a Matsubusa Iwatani anywhere outside of this town."

Max didn't say anything, didn't even turn his head to look at the newcomer sitting next to him. But there was pure fury in his eyes, and he was biting down on his lip. He'd been glowering all day, but that paled in comparison to the expression on his face right at this moment. Archie leaned past him to take a look at their uninvited guest. He was a bespectacled man, who, aside from his oddly polished head, looked like any other man of advanced age. "Uh…hello," Archie said, uncomfortable with the suddenly tense atmosphere at the table.

The old man smiled at Archie, though it wasn't particularly friendly. It made him look like he was in on some special joke that Archie couldn't possibly comprehend. "Hello there," he said, his voice laced with sweetness. "I don't believe we've met. Are you Matsu's friend?"

Archie didn't like the way the man had said friend. "Yes, I am," he replied, doing his best to stay polite. Some places in Hoenn, namely the big cities like Lilycove, were more accepting of homosexuality than others, and Archie hadn't been in this town long enough to know what the local opinions were.

The smirk on the old man's face implied that he thought he knew exactly what was going on between Archie and Max, and it just added another layer of discomfort to the current situation. "My name is Yamaouchi. Hisato Yamaouchi" he said. _So this was the guy who sent the letter._ "Matsu and I go way back. Don't we son?" Yamaouchi put a hand on Max's shoulder, and Max immediately shrugged it off without looking back. If Yamaouchi felt slighted by the reaction he didn't show it.

"I'm terribly sorry about your mother, Matsu," he continued without missing a beat. "She was one of my best customers." He glanced at Archie. "I run a pharmacy," he explained, "and Manami used to be my favorite customer. Of course…" His gaze slid over to the back of Max's head. "After Matsu left, her patronage became less frequent." Max bit down on his lip harder, so hard that Archie worried that he would draw blood.

"Well, thanks for stopping by," Archie said quickly. "And for contacting him about…this. But I don't think Max is in the mood to talk." There was an edge of threat in Archie's voice, and he sat-up straighter in his chair. Normally he wouldn't speak to his elders in such a manner, but this guy's smarminess was setting his teeth on edge. Max sure as hell didn't need this right now.

Yamaouchi paid Archie no mind. "I didn't see her as often after you left," he continued, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "It was like she was suddenly cured of whatever illness had plagued her for all those years." Max tightened his grip on the cup of water. Archie put a hand on his knee and squeezed reassuringly. "She became a completely different person practically overnight. More outgoing, more charitable, more…alive." He smiled again, and it was the slimiest, most disgusting smile Archie had ever seen. "Spent all her time working for the community. Used to let the young trainers stay at her house if the Pokémon center was full. Eh, perhaps your friend here met her when he was passing through town."

Archie was pretty sure he hadn't, but he was not going to be sucked into a conversation with this jerk. "I think you should go," he said, no longer hiding his hostility.

Yamaouchi shrugged, and Archie realized that he might have to remove this man by force if he didn't leave on his own very soon. Not exactly something he wanted to resort to at a funeral of all places, but the things this man was implying were way out of line.

Yamaouchi continued talking at Max without a thought for Archie's rapidly increasing anger. "Yes, Matsu, I think you would've been surprised to see the person she had become." He paused, allowing the words to sink in. The cup Max was clutching bent at the center, and droplets of water spilled onto his hand. "But I understand why you couldn't come back. Given the nature of the organization you had involved yourself with-"

Max slammed his fist down on the table, overturning the cup and spilling water everywhere. Archie had battled a trainer with a Magnemite many years ago and while he couldn't remember much about the battle, he'd never forget just how unexpectedly loud the shockwave of its Sonic Boom had been. It was like one of those had exploded through the funeral home, and everyone in the room went quiet as they turned to stare at whatever the source of the sound had been.

Max didn't even notice the stares directed at their table. His face was completely blank, but Archie could see the rage burning in his eyes. Without a word, he stood up and walked out of the room.

For one painfully awkward moment, all eyes were on Archie. Yamaouchi was also staring at him, amused instead of shocked and curious. Archie seriously considered punching the smug look off of the rotten old man's face, than thought better of it. He got up, pushed his chair in, and rushed towards the exit, hoping that Max hadn't gotten too far ahead of him.


	8. Chapter 6

I own nothing

He caught up with Max relatively quickly, in spite of the redhead's long, determined strides down the streets of his hometown. Archie had at first thought that Max had been on his way back to their motel, to grab his bag and leave on the next train out. But Max walked right past the cozy little building without a second glance.

It seemed that Max hadn't forgotten about Lavaridge in the years that he'd been gone, even if the town had forgotten about him. He stalked through the town with surety, not pausing even once to reorient himself with his surroundings. Although, perhaps, not much had changed since he had left. The buildings here were old, fashioned after the Kantoese style of architecture. It looked like something one would find in a history textbook, which had its own kind of charm.

Archie was too concerned with Max to admire the rustic mountain town. He had tried to speak with the man when he had initially caught up him, but all his attempts were ignored in favor of stomping angrily to wherever he was going. If he was going anywhere at all. For all Archie knew, Max could have just been trying to walk off his anger. But that really didn't seem like something he would do, so Archie assumed that Max was headed to a specific location. Part of him hoped that he was going to that asshole's pharmacy in order to smash the place up, an endeavor that Archie would've been more than happy to assist with.

They walked for a good while, Max's momentum not slowing down at all. It was a silent walk. Archie knew better than to try asking questions again, as Max didn't even acknowledge his presence as he trailed behind him. Then, suddenly, he stopped in front of a small house on the outskirts of town. The house, while small, was neatly kept, the lawn well maintained, despite the cold weather. The remains of a garden stood off to the side, plant stalks dry and neglected. The gravel pathway to the house was relatively free of debris, and the front of the house was clean, the white paint spotless.

Max stood rooted to his spot on the sidewalk in front of the house, glaring at it as though it were a decrepit shack. Then he gathered up his nerve and strode along the path to the front door. Archie followed close behind and grabbed his arm just as he was about to turn the door knob. "You can't!" Archie said as Max turned to look at him. "I-I mean, you shouldn't."

Max stared at him, confused, and Archie was a little glad to see something other than anger on his face. "Why not?" he snapped, annoyed by the delay.

"If you go right home after a funeral, a Duskull will follow you into your house," Archie explained. He turned back towards the street behind them, on the lookout for any ghost Pokémon that might be hiding in the area. "You never heard of that?" Every kid in Hoenn had to have heard of that superstition.

Max rolled his eyes. "The Duskull only follows you to 'your' home," he replied condescendingly as he wrenched his arm out of Archie's grasp. "I haven't lived here for fifteen years."

"But you did live here," Archie pointed out as Max turned the knob. Or tried to. The door was locked, and it didn't give, even as Max jostled it more aggressively. "That might still count," he said as Max swore and banged on the door.

"If a Groudon-damned Duskull decides to attack us, than I will fight it myself," Max said through gritted teeth. "She never used to lock this thing." He patted himself down, searching through his pockets for something. "Shit. Do you have a bobby pin?"

"Do I look like an old lady to you?" Archie sighed as he ran a hand through his hair. "You really want to get in there, don't you?" Max nodded, keeping his angry gaze on the doorknob. "Fine. Move out of the way, then." Max stepped off of the stoop and backed away a bit, watching wordlessly as Archie took stock of the door. It was painted a dark, emerald green, the same color as the window shutters. Archie put a hand on the wood, noting that the material felt strong and sturdy. The hinges indicated that the door swung inward though, so there was a chance that his plan might work.

 _Only one way to find out._ Archie lifted his leg and kicked, as hard as he could, just under the doorknob. The door flew open with a loud bang, the darkened living room of Max's former home now accessible to the both of them. Archie's foot hurt like hell, but he grinned at Max anyway as he gestured towards the entrance. "After you, Maxie."

Max's mouth was hanging open in shock, though he didn't look displeased by Archie's display of brute strength. He regained his composure quickly. "Thank you," he said, almost comically polite given the context, before walking into the house.

It was dark and quiet, almost eerily so, though Archie figured that was more due to the fact he had just come from the only occupant's funeral. Had the place been well-lit, it likely would've looked cozy and inviting- the room was spotless, and charmingly decorated in warm hues. Pretty, rose-colored curtains hung on the windows, the shade pairing nicely with both the carpeting and light-pink faux leather couch.

Archie noticed that Max had shot the couch a glare (though he could fathom why- it was a nice couch, not new, but clean and comfortable looking) before stalking off towards the equally clean kitchen area. He was opening up the cabinets and rifling through their contents, the dishes rattling against each other as he searched for…something. Archie didn't know what, didn't know why Max had been so determined to come here the way he had, didn't understand why Max had such an estranged relationship with a woman who, from what he had heard, seemed almost a saint to her community.

"You need some help?" he asked tentatively as Max slammed one cabinet shut and opened the one next to it. "What are you looking for?"

There was no response. There were fewer dishes in the subsequent cabinets, so Max made quick work of them. Archie stood in the middle of the room, unsure of what to do with himself, part of him wishing that a Duskull would show up, just to give him something useful to do. None did, unfortunately, so Archie was left alone to watch Max as he continued his search.

Archie thought that he'd finally be enlightened when Max closed the final cabinet, empty-handed. But no, he simply walked to the sink in the middle of the counter and began searching that too. The kitchen island that separated the living room from the kitchen blocked Archie's view of the other man, but he could still hear items being pulled out and searched.

What could Max possibly be looking for under the kitchen sink? Perhaps Archie would know if he found it? With that thought in mind, Archie glanced around the living room and spotted a small bureau adjacent to the television on the other side of the room. He went over to it, noting that it was covered in framed photographs of various trainers and their Pokémon, likely the trainers that Max's mother had allowed to stay at her house. Most of the trainers appeared to be pretty young, kids with unevolved Pokémon just starting out. If Max hadn't been back here in fifteen years that meant that he would've left at age ten, the age that most of these trainers seemed to be. Archie frowned- had Max's mother taken these kids in because her own son had left her? Suddenly sadder than he had been during the funeral, Archie opened the drawer. It seemed pretty innocuous to him- some pens scattered about, a stack of sticky notes, a blue cookie tin that Archie instinctively knew contained no cookies, and some postcards. Archie picked one of the postcards up and read it.

He only got as far as the sender's name (a Tamira Diaz) when he heard Max stomp out of the kitchen. He caught sight of the redhead's back as he walked down the darkened hall and entered a room on the far end. Archie put the postcard back in its place and closed the drawer before starting off after him, turning the hall light on as he passed the switch.

He could hear Max from outside the room, still searching for Arceus-knew-what. Archie had intended to follow him in but paused at the door. He glanced over at the room Max had entered and realized it was a bedroom. _His mother's room,_ he thought as he observed Max opening the dresser drawers and pulling out clothes. The whole thing was making Archie uncomfortable, and not just because he was lingering in the doorway of a dead stranger's bedroom. He took a step back, then another, and then turned around, intending on going back to the living room and waiting for Max on the couch.

His attention was caught by another room before he could exit the hallway. It was right next to Max's mother's room, and logic stated that it should be either another bedroom or a bathroom. He stood in front of the closed door, his curiosity overcoming his discomfort. Max hadn't given this room a second look as he stormed down the hall, so he clearly didn't think whatever he was looking for was in this room. _Was it his?_ Archie thought, taking a quick glance at the bedroom Max was searching. It didn't look like Max would be emerging anytime soon, so Archie opened the door.

He'd been right about it being Max's old room- nobody over the age of ten would have a comforter with little Spoinks printed on it. This room, like the rest of the house, was small but spotless. _Too spotless,_ Archie thought as he eyed the perfectly made bed. There was not a speck of debris on the carpet, and even the window glass was clear and free of smudges. Archie took a step into the room, almost worried that he would track dirt onto the meticulously clean carpet. There wasn't a whole lot of furniture in here, just the bed, a dresser, and a small nightstand with a thick book titled _Essentials of Geology_ on it.

The dresser was covered in rocks of various hues, sizes and textures. _A rock obsessed nerd, even back then._ Archie walked over to get a closer look at the collection. The rocks were organized in neat rows, thought it didn't look they'd been organized in any particular fashion (though maybe they were- Archie didn't know a whole lot about geology). The spaces between each were free of dust, and the dark wood shone, as though it had recently been polished. Archie picked up a bright, shiny red rock, the small gem smooth in his palm. It was clear to him at this point that Max's mother had kept this room in perfect condition, though it seemed unlikely that anyone had slept in it in years. Had she wanted this room to be ready in the off-chance that her son would return to her? The deep sadness that Archie had felt while looking at the photographs returned and he frowned at the gem in his hand. What could this woman have done to drive her son away so badly?

"Here they are!" The shout, almost sing-song in tone, brought Archie's attention away from the rocks. Not a moment later, Max entered the room, carrying a bunch of bright orange bottles in his arms. He dropped them angrily onto the floor, pointing at them triumphantly. "I knew it!"

Archie put the rock back in its place and stared at the white capped bottles scattered on the ground. One of them rolled towards his foot. "What…what's all this?" he asked, picking it up.

"It's proof!" Max replied, a proud smile on his face. The smile didn't ease the bitterness in his eyes. "Proof that nobody really changes," he elaborated upon seeing Archie's baffled expression. Then the smile faded from his face as he realized where he was. He looked around the room warily, confused.

Archie glanced down at the pill bottle in his hand. 'Klonopin' was printed on the bottle in thick blocky letters. _Prescribed by a Dr. Lanta._ He looked down at the other pill bottles, able to see that not all of the pills were the same even through the opaque orange plastic. Some of them were white and cylindrical; others were round and pinkish in color. The ones in his hand were small, round and green. "What are these? Why are there so many of them?" He had never seen so many pills in one place.

Max turned his gaze from the bed to the pill bottles on the floor. "Well," he said, assessing the bottles "that's Valium." He pointed to a bottle containing white, cylindrical pills. "That's Xanax." The tone of his voice was clinical, but Archie could detect the edge of anger in it. "You've got Klonopin in your hand, I think." He thought for a moment, and then said "She used to have a lot of Percocets too, but I suppose she couldn't afford those anymore. Or maybe she lost her taste for it, I don't know."

Archie swallowed dryly, unsure of what he should say. "Was she sick or something?" he croaked after one tense moment.

"No," Max answered instantly. "Well, maybe. Depends on how you define sick." He kicked the bottles hard, scattering them further. "I wonder how she could afford all of this." His bitter smile returned. "Perhaps she actually charged those trainers that she let stay here." He walked over to the bed and lifted the comforter, raising an eyebrow at the childish sheets. "Would explain the new décor." He pressed down on the bed with his hand. "And a new mattress! She really went all out."

Archie thought about the photos on the bureau, the postcards in the drawer, and shook his head. "No. I don't think she did that." He looked at Max directly in the eyes. "I don't think she let anyone stay in this room."

Max scoffed at that. "Oh, you think that she was keeping this room all nice and clean just for me?" he asked mockingly. "You think that she was waiting around, doing all these good deeds because she was hoping that her sullen little brat would come back to her?" He laughed derisively as he moved towards the dresser. "She even kept my rocks." He picked one up, a hefty, reddish-brown piece of what may have been granite. "If she really cared that much about me, than she should have showed it while I was living here." He pulled his arm back and threw the rock at the window, where it crashed through the glass, leaving a good sized, jagged hole.

Archie winced, dropped the pill bottle back onto the floor, and rushed over to Max. But he had already picked up another rock. "Everyone in this town was so grateful to her for her charitable works," he gritted out as he threw the second rock. This one missed the window, hitting the wall instead with a loud thud. "If they'd seen all of this, maybe they wouldn't have felt so bad for her!" He snatched a dark blue, pitted rock, knocking several of its neighbors out of their places. "Maybe they wouldn't assume that her bastard son just up and left for no reason!"

He pulled his arm back to throw but Archie caught his arm before he could complete the action. For a moment, they stood like that, neither one of them moving nor speaking. There was anger in Max's expression, in the bright red of his cheeks, in his gritted teeth, in his dark, narrowed eyes. Anger and bitterness, but also desperation, a desperation that made Archie think that this was more complicated than he had initially thought. This outburst, and Max's behavior leading up to it, was more than just the result of years of bottled-up resentment. He was angry at his mother, yes, but he was also hurt, incredibly so.

Archie didn't know how he could possibly make any of this better, but he wanted badly to try. "What kind of rock is that?" he blurted out.

Max blinked, his anger melting away in response to the unexpected question. "What?"

"What kind of rock is that?" Archie repeated, letting of Max's arm to take his hand. "It's uh…interesting looking!" It was, actually. It was mostly black, pitted and rough to the touch, but it shone dark blue in spots.

Max looked down at the rock as though seeing it for the first time. "It's…scoria," he said, surprise in his voice. His eyes widened at the sight of the rock, and his expression lacked any kind of anger for the first time since they had arrived at the house.

Archie didn't know if it was that rock in particular that had caused the reaction or what, but he supposed it didn't matter. "Where'd you find it? On Mt. Chimney?"

"The Jagged Pass," Max replied in near whisper, still staring at the rock. He pulled his hand away from Archie's. "I…spent a lot of time there when I was a kid. When I couldn't stand being in this house."

"Let's go there."

"What?" For the second time in five minutes, Archie had caught Max off his guard, and had the circumstances been different, Archie would've been pretty proud of that fact.

"Let's go there. I want to see where all these rocks came from." He didn't say it was because he didn't think Max could take being in this house much longer.

Max seemed to see right through Archie's flimsy façade. "Since when are you so interested in geology?"

Archie shrugged, knowing that any answer he made up likely wouldn't fool Max. "We're here until tomorrow morning. What else are we gonna do?" He glanced over at the now disorganized rock collection. "Well, I guess we could smash up that asshole's pharmacy with these rocks if you'd rather do that instead."

Max laughed softly at the suggestion, and it was nice to hear him laughing without any bitterness. "As tempting as that is, I think I've given the people of this town enough reason to gossip about me without adding vandalism to the list." He smiled at Archie, and though it wasn't a happy smile, it was an improvement over his anger. "I suppose we could go. If that's what you want."

Archie grinned. "Lead the way, Maxie."

* * *

It took them about an hour and a half to get to the Jagged Pass from the house. They'd stopped at the motel to change into more casual clothing before making their way out of the town towards Mt. Chimney.

Truth be told, Archie wasn't all that fond of mountains. They were too dry, too harsh, and it was far too easy for him to lose his way on this rough, rocky terrain. That had actually happened the last time he'd been here, many years ago. The small group he had been traveling with had made a wrong turn somewhere on the pass, and they'd been lost for hours among the plateaus, the reddish-brown rocks that made up the mountain all looking the same after hours of frantic wandering. They'd eventually found their way out, but the experience had put Archie off of mountains in general, and he hadn't been back to Mt. Chimney since.

The mountain certainly wasn't endearing itself to him right now. Ash was falling all around him, on his clothes, in his eyes, and most annoying of all, in his hair. He ran a hand through his hair for what must have been the hundredth time, feeling the dusty ash coming off onto his hand. He frowned and brushed his dirty hand off on his dirty shirt. If Max was bothered by the ash, or the rough, uneven ground, he didn't show it. He moved with purpose, similar to the way he'd walked to the house hours before, though his steps were lighter now then they had been, as though he were looking forward to getting to wherever he was going.

They headed up the small hill that led to the mountain and went straight for the first level. Archie had thought that this was their stop at first-there were plenty of rocks on the ground here, and a bike was needed to get to the upper levels. Or not. Max walked right over to the rocky face of the plateau and began climbing it effortlessly, his hands and feet instinctively knowing where to climb. Archie watched him for a moment, and then began climbing up after Max just as the redhead pulled himself up over the ledge. It wasn't all that hard-the ledge wasn't that high, and the rocks jutting out of it made for decent footholds, even if it was a bit difficult to get a good grip on the granite with his hands.

By the time Archie pulled himself up, Max was already halfway up the second ledge. Archie chuckled a bit to himself, than followed up as he had before, this climb giving no more difficulty than the first one had. This time, Max offered a hand to Archie as he reached the top of the ledge. Archie took it, even though he didn't really need to. "We can climb up one more level without a bike or actual gear," he said as Archie stood up. "But we can stay here, if you want."

Archie looked up at the plateau Max was speaking of. It was similar enough to the first two ledges, made up of reddish-brown granite and covered with patches of gray-green moss here and there. It didn't look like a hard climb, and he figured that Max wouldn't have mentioned it if he wanted to stop here. "Sure, I can get up there no problem."

Max shrugged, then turned and headed towards the plateau, once again climbing with agile ease. Archie, however, found that this ledge was a bit steeper than the other one, and it was harder to keep his grip on the rocks because they were smaller. He slipped briefly, but quickly regained his balance and made it up the mountain, this time more eager to grasp Max's outstretched hand once he reached the top. He looked over at the next level and was slightly relieved to see that it would've been impossible for either of them to climb up any further.

Max followed his stare and smiled wryly. "I tried to climb up that ledge so many times when I was a kid. I only stopped after I nearly broke my neck."

Archie turned towards the steep, sand covered sloped that led further up the mountain. "You didn't have a bike?" he asked before he could think better of it.

"No," Max replied emotionlessly, his focus on the patchy ground they were walking on.

"Oh." Archie brushed off his dirty shirt, and an awkward silence stretched between the two of them.

After a moment of staring at the ground Max broke the silence. "I could never save up enough money for one while I lived here. But…" He paused, biting his lip. "But I did buy one in Mauville city, when I obtained enough money. But the funny thing is," he said, looking over at Archie now. "Even after all these years, I still haven't gotten to the top of this mountain." He laughed derisively at himself. "Isn't that funny?"

"Not really," Archie responded, scratching the back of his neck.

Max appeared taken aback by Archie's bluntness, as he stopped laughing. He turned his gaze to view of the pass and Route 112 beneath them. He sighed, then put a hand in his jacket pocket and pulled out a Pokéball. "I brought my Camerupt along," he said, holding up the Pokéball. "Do you mind if I let her out?"

"Uh…" Archie regarded the ball uneasily, an image of the irritable fire Pokémon charging at him appearing in his mind. "She's not gonna try to knock me on my ass, is she?"

"She's much calmer when I'm around," Max said, then as an afterthought, added "though I wouldn't get too close, at least not for the first few minutes."

Archie shrugged. "Go ahead," he said, glancing around the plateau, hoping that he wouldn't end up being chased around it by an overly aggressive Camerupt. But there was no way he was going to let Max think that he was afraid of any Pokémon. He caught some movement near the far-off tree line on the eastern side of the mountain. The creatures came a bit closer and he realized that they were a herd of Numel, grazing on the dry, ashy grass that grew in patches on the mountain face. "Is this where you caught her?" he asked as Max released his Camerupt.

Max's face turned red, and he kept his eyes on his Pokémon, scratching her between her ears. "I thought…perhaps she'd like to come back to where she was born," he explained, sounding embarrassed. "It was a silly thought. Even if she could remember this place, she's not particularly sentimental."

Archie looked the Camerupt over. She was completely focused on her master, nuzzling the hand that was stroking her large, fuzzy head. Then she turned her head towards him, as though sensing his curious stare. Her big, brown eyes went from dully sweet to annoyed in a split second. She snorted, stomping her hoofed foot. "Scoria," Max said sharply, trying to redirect her attention back to himself. "Calm down." The chastisement had no effect, as she began to growl softy, her glare fixed on Archie. Suddenly Archie wished he'd brought one of his Pokémon- he'd left them in Matt's care for the day, not expecting to need them at a funeral of all places. He looked at the trees behind him, wondering if he was fast enough to run over and climb one of them should this beast decide to charge on him.

Max seemed more exasperated by his Pokémon's aggression than worried. He tore some grass off the ground and dangled the dirty plant in front of his Camerupt's face. "Look, Scoria!" he said. "Grass! With ash on it! Your favorite!" The prospect of chowing down on some dusty grass was too enticing for the Camerupt to resist, and she eagerly took the stalk from Max's hand, completely forgetting about Archie's existence. She swallowed it down, and then, suddenly realizing that the entire ledge was covered in vegetation, scampered off to a grassy patch to eat some more.

Both men sighed, one in relief, the other in weariness. Max watched Scoria eat for a while, then walked over to the edge of the plateau and sat down, his legs dangling above the ground below. Archie joined him, albeit cautiously, hoping that Scoria wouldn't get upset about him sitting so close to her master. "What's her deal?" he grumbled as he sat, not expecting an answer.

"It's my fault," Max replied, an undercurrent of despair in his voice. He idly played with a blade of grass as Archie stared at him, dumbfounded. He pointed at the plateau below them. "Do you see that spot? Right over there?"

Archie wasn't really sure what Max was talking about, as the rocky ground all looked the same to him, but he nodded anyway, wanting to see where Max was going with this. "I got into a fight with another trainer shortly after capturing her. Not a Pokémon battle, but an actual, physical fight. He punched me, and she just…" He gestured at nothing, towards the mountainous landscape. "The trainer fell off the ledge and onto the ground. Right there. Arceus, I can still see him on the ground there."

Archie's mouth dropped open and there was a sinking feeling in his stomach. "Did…did the kid die?"

"He was alive when I left him. I assume he's still alive today." Archie nodded, more than a little relieved. Fights between trainers weren't uncommon, though he had to wonder why Max had gotten into a fight in the first place. "Things were fine for a while," Max continued, "but then I started running with a less than savory crowed." At those words, the rumors about him being in some sort of gang flashed through Archie's mind, and sure enough, Max was pulling down his sleeve, revealing the purple snake tattoo that spiraled around his arm. It was a Seviper-no, actually, it was an Ekans, a snake Pokémon native to Kanto. He was staring at the tattoo with a mix of disgust and regret. "I spent so long doing shitty things with stupid people that she became incredibly defensive of me. Even bystanders were a threat. Everyone is an enemy until they prove themselves otherwise to her." He leveled a steady gaze at Archie. "She's aggressive because I put her in situations that forced her to become that way."

Once again, Archie had no idea what to say. Here was Max, basically admitting to his criminal past, admitting that spent a good portion of his life interacting with and likely working for, those gangsters that he would hear about on the news from time to time. Had this been what Max had meant when he said that Archie was too good for him? Archie stared back at Max, hoping that the other man couldn't see the conflicting emotions running through his mind.

Archie had heard of Team Rocket. They were high-profile traffickers in smuggled anything- stolen goods, stolen Pokémon, stolen money- and that they weren't above using violent means to get what they wanted. He couldn't help wonder- had Max ever hurt anybody? Had he killed? What about his Camerupt? Was it trained to kill? Or just to defend? The two could easily overlap, he realized, his blood going cold. Max looked like he was bracing himself for Archie's rejection.

Archie wasn't going to reject him just yet, even if this new information was making him nervous. "When you say shitty things, you don't mean…"he trailed off, unable to voice the most pressing concern in his mind.

"I've never killed anyone. Team Rocket was, and probably still is, full of violent, idiotic thugs, but murderers were never accepted," Max said quickly, a trace of nervousness in his voice. "But those same violent thugs liked to pick on anyone they perceived as weak. And since, at that time, I was a skinny kid with glasses, I became a target." His gaze flickered, and he looked away. "That's why she's instinctively mistrustful of anyone that approaches. She's better than she was before but…" He turned his head back towards Scoria, still happily grazing. "I don't think she'll ever really get over it." He frowned and took his glasses off, wiping them ineffectually on with the hem of his shirt, more to give himself an excuse to stop talking than to clean his glasses.

Archie struggled to process this information, though he was definitely relieved to hear that Max wasn't a killer. He'd known, in the back of his mind, that the redhead had been distant for a reason. Why else would he have tried so hard to push him away? Max being ashamed of his past-and he sure seemed to be ashamed of it right now- had explained a lot about his actions throughout the past few weeks since they had met. Part of him was relieved to find that Max hadn't been playing games with him, at least not intentionally, as he had initially thought. And another part, the part of himself that he didn't want to admit existed, fount the whole ex-Rocket thing oddly attractive. He didn't really understand it- was it some sort of borderline cliché attraction to bad boys that Archie hadn't known he'd had until now? Maybe.

While Archie was lost in his thoughts, Max had become unnerved by his silence. "If you wanted to never talk, or see me again after this, I understand," he said, trying to sound unaffected by the prospect of never seeing Archie again. It didn't work. Archie could hear the anxiety in his voice, even as he tried to hide it.

"Don't be stupid," he responded without missing a beat, satisfied at seeing Max's tense shoulders relax a bit. "You were a kid back then. Kids do some dumb stuff."

"Not all kids join internationally reviled gangs," Max pointed out, unwilling to let himself believe that Archie could like him after this confession.

"Well…yeah, that's true. But it's not like you were a hitman, right? Or a…I dunno, I don't really know that much about Team Rocket."

"If you did, you'd maybe rethink associating with me." Max fiddled with his sleeve, staring down at the tattoo as though trying to will it off of his arm. "I…never dealt in Pokémon smuggling. Or any kind of smuggling, really. They mostly used me for burglaries, and occasionally spying. Anything that needed someone who could go unnoticed in a crowd."

Archie couldn't fathom how someone like Max could go unnoticed by anyone, but he didn't bother bringing it up. "So, I guess if anything goes missing at work, I'll know who to blame." Max rolled his eyes at the stupid joke, but there was a hint of a smile on his face, so Archie continued, encouraged. "Look, I don't know all the details, but it's pretty obvious that you didn't have an easy childhood. And yeah, maybe you did some bad things. But look at you now!" He gestured at Max. "You've obviously cleaned yourself up real good. So I say that the past is in the past."

Max still didn't look like he was as willing to forgive himself as Archie was, but he shrugged his shoulders, unable and unwilling to argue against himself any longer. "I think the strangest thing about this," he said, thinking out loud, "is that I only quit because I did want to return here. I wanted to show everyone, especially my mother, what I'd made of myself." His voice cracked, just a little. "I wanted her to see how much better off I was," his shoulders trembled, "without her." He bent forward, putting his face in his hands. "But it seems like she was the one who was better off." The words were muffled by his hands, but Archie could still hear the hurt and regret in his voice. "Fuck. I should never have come back."

Archie put an arm around Max, rubbing comforting circles into his back. He wasn't sobbing, but Archie knew that he was on the brink of a breakdown. "I think," he said, choosing his words carefully. "I think you did the right thing, coming here. You already regret not returning sooner. If you had missed that too…" He gave Max's shoulder a squeeze. "You would've regretted that too."

Max raised his head up and laughed humorlessly. "I can't tell if that makes me feel better or not. But one less regret is one less regret." He leaned against Archie, his body weary. They sat like that for a while, looking over the rocky scenery of the Pass. It was late-afternoon, not quite sunset, but close, and the light from the winter sun was casting an orange glow over their surroundings.

Archie had been watching a group of Spoinks bounce across the ledge below when Max spoke again. "I still don't understand what you see in me," he said, pulling away to look Archie in the eyes. "But I'm glad you here with me." He looked away, embarrassed at his own honesty.

In that moment, Archie wanted to tell him everything, about how fascinating he thought Max was and how he'd never met anyone quite like him before. About how much he liked Max's dry, sarcastic humor, his little outburst of temper, his passion for his work, his obvious love for his Pokémon, his stubbornness, and yes, even his iciness. He thought about telling him all that and it was on the tip of his tongue. But he realized that saying all that now probably wasn't appropriate and Max likely wasn't ready to hear it anyway. So Archie just pulled him close again and said, "No prob, Maxie."


End file.
